The National Police has arrested in Tenerife the four boat skippers in which the lifeless body of a minor was found on October 27, as alleged perpetrators of the crimes of reckless homicide and favoring clandestine immigration.
The harsh conditions in which the journey took place could have caused the death of the minor on a boat in which 226 sub-Saharan migrants were traveling, the National Police reported this Sunday.
In this regard, the police force recalls that at 05:00 on October 27, a boat was intercepted by the Maritime Rescue service, after being located eight miles away from the Port of Los Cristianos (Arona), south of Tenerife. .
The people traveling on the boat were transferred to the aforementioned port and 14 were taken to the hospital to receive medical attention, four of them urgently by helicopter.
Unfortunately, the lifeless body of a minor was found inside said boat, says the National Police.
The investigations carried out by security forces investigators led to the identification of the four canoe owners.
The National Police points out that during the eleven-day journey the trip was made without food or water inside the boat allegedly governed by those subsequently detained, which could “have contributed” to the death of the minor and the poor state of health of the the 14 people transferred to the hospital.
Likewise, according to the testimonies provided to the agents, “several people died during the crossing and their bodies were thrown over the side of the boat into the ocean.”
The national police arrested the four bosses and, after hearing their statements at police stations, they were placed at the disposal of the competent judicial authority.
The judicial authority determined the entry into preventive detention of three of the detainees and the release of the fourth, with precautionary measures.
