Moroccan Homeless Man’s Body Returned Home After Tragic Death in Barcelona Cold Wave

"The best thing is that after all this time, his mother will be able to see his face one last time, even if it’s through the coffin," consoles Nisrine, Amine’s cousin, boarding a plane with the coffin containing her cousin’s remains, who left 5 years ago from Khourigba to come to Europe in search of a better future, reports El Periodico.

Upon learning of his death, or rather of his brother Mohcine, declared dead in his place, the family asked Nisrine, a student in esthetics in Milan, to go to Barcelona to clarify the situation. On January 17, she arrives in the Catalan city and presents herself to the court to prove the identity of the two brothers. On the judge’s instructions, she is then taken to the police station to make a statement, before being taken to the Institute of Forensic Medicine to authenticate Amine’s body.

The court ordered the police to compare the fingerprints of the body with those of Amine registered by the Moroccan authorities. After that, the procedure for repatriating the remains can be initiated. The process of confirming Amine’s identity took a week. Finally, the Spanish justice officially notified Nisrine that it recognizes the remains as those of Amine.

Without delay, Nisrine initiated the procedure for repatriating Amine’s remains, before being informed that in compliance with the texts in force, repatriation was no longer possible. Apart from the repatriation action that should have been initiated by the Moroccan government or the consulate, Spanish law requires that before any repatriation of bodies, they must be embalmed before 96 hours from the time of death.

Fatima Zohra, a lawyer at the Moroccan consulate in Barcelona, demonstrating medical reports to support, that Amine’s body was well preserved and that it was still possible to proceed with its embalming, finally prevailed. On Thursday, February 4, the foreign health office approved the transfer of the body. "I think this is one of the first times a body has been embalmed and repatriated so long after death," notes Fatima, who asks that the regulations be revised, as there are currently modern methods of body preservation.

Several Moroccan journalists were waiting Monday evening at the Casablanca airport for Nisrine’s arrival. The story of Amine, an undocumented and homeless person, who died on the street in Barcelona, has shocked Moroccans. This Tuesday, a farewell ceremony was organized in a mosque in Khourigba before taking Amine to a cemetery near his parents’ residence.