Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
Rabat – Air Arabia confirmed that two of the 12 Moroccans who were arrested for the staged escape at Palma airport in Spain last Friday were immediately returned to Morocco on the same flight.
According to Europa press, the Air Arabia report revealed that, after the arrests, the plane took off to Morocco instead of completing its journey to Turkey, with two of the arrested passengers onboard.
Upon arrival in Morocco, the Moroccan Royal Gendarmerie detained the passengers and charged them with sedition. They have been in prison since Monday.
Read also: Spain Arrests 12 Passengers For Fleeing Plane, Most Suspects Are Moroccans
People taking the two passengers’ defense pointed out the “unequal treatment” between them and the rest of the group who were also arrested but remained in Spain.
The “grand escape,” which was planned on a Moroccan Facebook page called “Brooklyn,” involved an emergency landing after one of the passengers faked the symptoms of a diabetic coma.
The passenger is currently facing charges of conspiring to violate Spain’s immigration law and encouraging irregular immigration.
“There is no evidence that the incident is related to jihadism,” indicated Spanish newspaper La Razón.
“The individuals arrested do not have a record of other crimes, except for the one who faked the medical emergency. It was found out that he has a request from a Marbella Court from 2020,” the Spanish media outlet added.
Read also: A Moroccan Facebook Group Staged ‘Great Escape’ in Spain Airport
Moroccan authorities provided the Spanish police with photographs of 13 of the 24 individuals involved in the escape.
For its part, the Spanish police are tracking social media for any information that may lead to the location of the irregular migrants who are still on the run.
Morocco’s government has repeatedly vowed commitment to continue to assist its EU partners, notably Spain, in their struggle to curb waves of irregular migrants.
Since 2017, Morocco has prevented more than 14,000 unauthorized migration attempts.
