Spanish Authorities Bust Moroccan Child Trafficking Rings, Rescuing Migrant Minors

The children in question had been moved from shelters to other cities. As for the detainees, of Moroccan nationality, they were operating from Morocco and Campo de Gilbratar, according to a statement from the armed institute.

In a summary description of the modus operandi of these child traffickers, the statement notes that after the difficult journey of the children by boat and inflatables, and once they have reached the peninsula, the leaders of this network contact their families and agree on a price (between 600 and 800 euros) to transfer them to provinces such as Barcelona, Bilbao or Valencia.

It should be emphasized that during the payment, the minors were detained in houses managed by these organizations in Cadiz and Seville. This is where the investigations on the first group began at the end of last year, in a reception center for minors where, the statement specifies, the Civil Guard found that a total of 253 children had escaped in 2018.

Accused of "crimes against the rights of foreign citizens, promoting illegal immigration, illegal detention and belonging to a criminal organization," the members of these organizations as well as those of others operating in the cities of Algeciras and San Pablo de Buceite (Cadiz) have been detained.

In total, 16 traffickers of migrant children from Morocco from four groups were arrested. "Several searches of their homes allowed the Civil Guard to seize computer equipment and a marijuana plantation," the same source added.