Spanish Court Blocks Extradition of Moroccan Wanted for Aiding Fugitive Murderer

The Spanish court has refused to extradite the Moroccan, despite the approval of the Council of Ministers last January. In its decision dated May 25 and to which El Periódico de España had access, it did not grant the request of the Tetouan court to extradite this Moroccan who is also the subject of an investigation opened by the Barcelona provincial court for robbery with violence, injury and kidnapping.

Morocco has requested the extradition of this national for having helped a Spanish criminal, convicted of car theft and murder, to escape from a hospital in Algeciras in November 2018 and to illegally enter Morocco on a fishing boat in exchange for 3,000 euros. The fugitive managed to reach a beach in Fnideq and hide in a house until his arrest. He was posing as a tourist.

For this act of concealment of a foreigner, moreover convicted, the Moroccan faces a sentence of 6 months to 3 years in prison and a fine in Morocco. But in Spain, the act does not constitute an offense or a crime. The Moroccan would be prosecuted if he had been informed of the offenses committed by the Spanish fugitive. A hypothesis difficult to confirm in this case.

Regarding the offense of illegal entry, it is provided for by Spanish law and is punishable by one year in prison, except for humanitarian reasons. According to the extradition agreement with Morocco, only persons sentenced to a prison sentence of at least two years can be extradited. For all these reasons, the Audiencia Nacional refused to extradite the Moroccan.