The National Court of Spain has made a significant ruling by rejecting the extradition request from Rabat for a Moroccan national currently serving a nine-year prison sentence in Spain. This individual was sentenced for his role as the captain of a migrant boat, which tragically resulted in the deaths of 16 individuals due to dehydration. The court determined that the charges brought forth by the Moroccan Attorney General were essentially the same as those for which he has already been convicted in Spain.
Specifically, in 2022, the Court of Las Palmas sentenced him to five years for facilitating illegal immigration, alongside an additional four years for 16 counts of involuntary manslaughter. This conviction stemmed from an incident in which the boat drifted for 14 days in the Atlantic Ocean in October 2020 after departing from Dakhla, destined for the Canary Islands.
The National Court acknowledged that the extradition request from the Moroccan Prosecutor's Office is supported by the extradition treaty between Spain and Morocco. However, the court found no grounds to claim that the request was based on political, religious, or racial persecution. Moreover, the incriminating account presented by Morocco, based on a complaint from the brother of one of the victims, would constitute accusations under Spanish law for being part of a criminal organization, facilitating illegal immigration, and manslaughter.
Nonetheless, the court declined the extradition on the grounds that the individual is already serving a sentence in Spain for these offenses, leading to a complex intersection of international law and humanitarian considerations in the realm of immigration and criminal justice.
As reported by infobae.com.
