Administrative records of irregular entries into the province of Almería have become a fundamental legal tool for courts prosecuting human trafficking networks in the Alboran Sea. This was highlighted in a recent ruling by the Fifth Section of the Provincial Court of Murcia, based in Cartagena, which sentenced two Algerian nationals to five years in prison for a crime against the rights of foreign citizens.
The judicial decision, issued on March 20, 2026, addresses the case of two individuals intercepted on August 12, 2025, after piloting a vessel with 17 people from the Algerian coast of Decheria to the Cartagena coastline. However, the decisive evidence for their conviction did not come solely from the waters of the Region of Murcia, but from the immigration police records of the Almería province.
During the sentencing process, the court considered a penalty framework ranging from four to eight years for this aggravated offense. The defense sought acquittal, while the Public Prosecutor's Office requested seven years. It was in this context that the defendants' history on the Almería coast tipped the scales.
The resolution details that both defendants had a record of illegal entry into Almería dated May 17, 2025, with no record of expulsion from national territory. In the pilot's case, this was his third detected entry, with previous attempts and documented returns in 2012 and 2019. This history allowed the Court to conclude that their criminal activity was not an isolated incident but a continuous involvement in human trafficking by sea from Algeria to Spain, thus justifying a sentence higher than the minimum.
The judgment also emphasized the extremely dangerous conditions of the journey, a key factor in applying the aggravated subtype of the Penal Code. The approximately 120 nautical mile journey was undertaken in a flimsy six-meter fiberglass boat, carrying 17 people, including two minors, without basic safety measures such as life jackets or a first-aid kit. The situation worsened when water began to enter the vessel, forcing occupants to bail it out with cut-up fuel drums.
Furthermore, the Murcia court proved the negligent handling of fuel on board, with the assistant changing hoses without stopping the engine, posing an extreme risk of fire or deflagration at sea. The pilot, for his part, instructed the travelers that, if intercepted, they should all claim to have steered the boat, seeking to avoid criminal responsibility.
The evidence included the testimony of a protected witness, who recognized the defendants, and a video recorded on a mobile phone by another passenger, clearly identifying the driver. Faced with this evidence, the defendants exercised their right not to testify, offering an unconvincing exculpatory version. The Murcia Court noted that while silence is not an indication of guilt, the lack of a reasonable explanation in the face of such compelling evidence allows for incriminating conclusions.
Ultimately, the ruling not only highlights the work of the Security Forces but also underscores the importance of proper bureaucratic traceability. The records processed months earlier on the beaches of Almería were crucial in demonstrating that the defendants were not mere passengers but active, repeat offenders in the lucrative business of cross-border trafficking.
