An investigation by the Civil Guard has put the spotlight on a plot that supposedly did business with the dead of Algerian emigration to Spanish coasts. As published this Monday in the newspaper The truth, agents have made several arrests this weekend and there are at least 20 people under investigation in Murcia, Alicante, Almería and Madrid; among them, funeral home employees, forensic assistants and Justice Administration personnel assigned to the Institute of Legal Medicine of Cartagena. Some members of the network are suspected of charging relatives of the deceased to fraudulently facilitate the identification and procedures for the repatriation of the bodies, according to the Murcia newspaper.
The Court of Instruction 4 of Cartagena is coordinating the proceedings, which are under summary secrecy. Both the Government Delegation and the Superior Court of Justice of Murcia have confirmed the operation to EL PAÍS, but have not given details, not even the number of detainees. Asked about the alleged involvement of officials from the Institute of Forensic Medicine, the Ministry of Justice does not offer any information.
The investigation began a few months ago following a complaint about the publication of photographs of corpses of Algerian immigrants who died in their attempt to reach Spain. The photographs had been taken in autopsy rooms and their leak would only be possible with the connivance of employees of the Institute of Legal Medicine. The images provided very valuable information for intermediaries contacted by the families of the emigrants who died on their boat journey and who sought to confirm the death, identify their loved ones and repatriate them to Algeria. The investigation focuses on the connection with Algeria because it is from this country that the clandestine emigrants come from and arrive at the coasts of Almería, Murcia, Alicante and the Balearic Islands, focal points of the network.
The network, according to The truth, charged the relatives of the victims different amounts, the amount of which was not disclosed, for fraudulently obtaining the identification of the bodies. It is not clear, however, if it was an informal identification with which to confirm to the families – through photographs, for example – that the deceased was who they were looking for or if, in addition, there is falsification of documents with the that a formal but fraudulent identification was forced to carry out the repatriation.
In Spain there is a lack of clear and homogeneous protocols to proceed with the search for missing persons and the identification of deceased persons from irregular emigration. The lack of information and an accessible channel has been promoting the appearance of people who mediate between the Spanish authorities and family members for years. The majority do it altruistically, out of conviction and without charging them, but profiteers have also emerged who have made a business out of the pain of hundreds of families who do not know where to turn.
The investigation aims to clarify whether the activities of this alleged plot incurred crimes against freedom of conscience, religious feelings and respect for the deceased, membership in a criminal organization, revelation of secrets, fraud and bribery, according to the Murcia newspaper.
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