The National Court of Spain has recently made a significant ruling by rejecting the extradition request from Morocco for a Moroccan citizen who was convicted in Spain for being the captain of a migrant boat that tragically resulted in the death of 16 individuals after being adrift in the Atlantic Ocean for two weeks. The court determined that the individual is currently serving a sentence in Spain for the same crimes, which played a pivotal role in their decision.
In 2022, the Provincial Court of Las Palmas sentenced the man to nine years in prison: five years for facilitating illegal immigration and an additional four years for 16 counts of manslaughter due to negligence. According to the court's ruling, he was responsible for a boat that departed from Dakhla in October 2020, bound for the Canary Islands. Unfortunately, this vessel drifted in the Atlantic for 14 days, leading to the dehydration and subsequent deaths of 16 of its occupants.
The extradition request was filed by the Attorney General of the King of Morocco, following a complaint lodged by the brother of one of the victims. The National Court recognized that the request met the stipulated requirements outlined in the extradition treaty between Spain and Morocco and found no evidence that it was motivated by political, religious, or racial persecution.
However, the court concluded that the circumstances surrounding the Moroccan request correspond to the events that had already been adjudicated in Spain. According to the ruling, the charges brought forth by the Moroccan authorities could align with crimes under Spanish law, such as belonging to a criminal organization, facilitating illegal immigration, and manslaughter.
Ultimately, due to this overlap in legal matters, the National Court determined that extradition was not warranted, as the individual is already serving a prison sentence in Spain for the same offenses.
As reported by tribunaburgos.com.
