March 15, 2024 – 7:30 pm – Morocco
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Spain's Civil Guard has arrested 14 members of a criminal network that horribly extorted families of migrants missing at sea. The gang falsely promised to return the deceased to his homeland in exchange for exorbitant sums of money.
The network created fake social media profiles to contact relatives of missing migrants in Morocco and Algeria. After gaining their trust, they simulated a search for “missing” relatives. They then demanded large sums of money from the families in exchange for various fraudulent actions, including the return of so-called remains.
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The gang's nefarious practices were made even more shocking by the involvement of “employees of certain public institutions, such as the Institute of Forensic Medicine,” who illegally granted them access to sensitive identification data of deceased persons, according to Fox News. European press.
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After an extensive investigation, the 14 suspects, including the Moroccan leader of the criminal organization, were arrested in Murcia, Almería, Cartagena, Molina de Segura and Jaén. They are accused of various crimes, including breach of confidentiality, breach of the peace, fraud, membership in a criminal organization, forgery of documents, and corruption. The commander and his right-hand man were detained after the arrest.
