Two human trafficking gangs busted after taking thousands of migrants from Ceuta to mainland Spain for whopping £8,000

POLICE have busted two human trafficking cartels responsible for bringing thousands of migrants from Ceuta to mainland Spain. The gangs were reportedly charging an eye-watering £8,000 for the short boat crossing from Spain’s North African enclave to La Linea, near Gibraltar. Spanish National Police arrested five people in connection with people smuggling Credit: AP Thousands of migrants stormed the North African enclave on July 20 Credit: EPA Spanish police estimate the gangs make up to £50,000 per crossing by overloading migrants onto small boats. A total of five smugglers were arrested following a coordinated, multi-agency operation that took place shortly after thousands of migrants stormed the Spanish outpost on July 30. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! Two alleged people smugglers were arrested in the immediate aftermath of the border breach. A further two were apprehended in Gibraltar, after which all four individuals were charged with membership in a criminal organization and the facilitation of irregular immigration. Policemen stand guard near a group of migrants at El Trampolin beach Credit: EPA Cops say the smugglers charge £8,000 for the boarder crossing Credit: Reuters Finally, a fifth man suspected of belonging to a separate human smuggling network was arrested on August 14 and placed in provisional detention. Cops say the migrants were put up in safe houses or hidden in garages before being taken to the vessels due to transport them across the Mediterranean where other gang members were waiting for them. With their lives in the hands of smugglers, migrants endured treacherous journeys in the dead of night aboard boats with zero safety equipment. Cops says the initial take-down, in which the first four smugglers were apprehended, began when officers found an abandoned “speedboat-type vessel” in a coastal area of Ceuta. Most read in The Sun Migrants endure perilous journeys aboard smuggling boats Credit: Reuters Thousands of migrants still remain in Ceuta Credit: AP They said: “The investigation discovered members of the organisation used intermediaries responsible for recruiting people in an irregular situation who had reached Ceuta late last month and offered to transport them from Ceuta to mainland Spain in exchange for approximately £8,000. “The gang used support vehicles to carry out the journeys discreetly, attempting to avoid areas under police surveillance.” The network reportedly experienced pilots skilled at evasive manoeuvres to avoid police detection. In the second investigation, officers established the alleged involvement of a man in a sea crossing carried out on August 14, in which seven people were transported from Ceuta to the mainland coast. They were crammed into a small dingy which ran out of fuel and was left adrift in the Strait of Gibraltar. The police said: “Investigators also established the absence of life jackets, the lack of adequate signalling and rescue equipment and the presence of people with little or no ability to swim. “The journey took place at night, with the passengers remaining at sea for approximately five hours and travelling nearly 40 kilometres in open waters from Ceuta to the mainland coast.” It comes as Spain prepares to move at least 500 migrant girls from Ceuta to the mainland following an investigation into sexual abuse. Cops are probing claims that 15 children were sexually abused in the North African enclave – including one girl aged 10. Spain’s ministry of youth and childhood has now said it was drawing up plans to move around 500 young girls to the mainland for their safety. An estimated 72,000 people made the crossing to Ceuta in late July, of which 145 died. On August 14, over 100 further people were detained in the Moroccan town on Fnideq as they attempted to breach the boarder. Messages reportedly circulated across social media calling for a new invasion of the enclave, sparking Spanish riot squad to barricade the Ceutan boundary. Comment now