NGO ship may have accepted money for transporting migrants
Authorities ordered an investigation on suspicion of aiding and abetting illegal immigration after the NGO ship Mediterranea Saving Humans supposedly received money from the Danish shipping company AP Moeller-Maersk for having taken over 27 migrants stranded on board the cargo ship.
On suspicion of aiding and abetting illegal immigration, the state prosecutors office in the south Italian commune of Ragusa ordered an investigation into the two ship s crew, as well as their mother companies.
According to the accusation, the migrants were transferred without consulting the Maltese and Italian authorities, and the prosecution maintains that there was no justification of the medical emergency reported by the rescue team, who boarded the tugboat illegally on 12 September 2020.
The illegal migrants were „found in severe psycho-somatic condition by our medical team, so we immediately transfered them to our own ship to reach shore as soon as possible,” said Mediterranea Saving Humans.
The investigation is being conducted by an investigative team consisting of soldiers, police and navy members. Based on the statements, the group has possesion of phone calls, financial investigations and documentary evidence.
Ringrazio la procura di Ragusa, giusto che si vada fino in fondo. Su questo tema chiederò un incontro urgente al Premier e con il ministro dell Interno. Nei primi due mesi di quest anno ci sono stati 4.536 sbarchi, contro i 2.359 del 2020 e i 262 del 2019. https://t.co/RwAdLR8yxU
— Matteo Salvini (@matteosalvinimi) March 1, 2021
Mediterranea Saving Humans denies accepting money in exchange for taking the migrants on board.
Trasbordo di migranti in cambio di soldi? Accusa gravissima della Procura di Ragusa alla Mare Jonio. FDI chiede risposte urgenti al Ministro Lamorgese. Continueremo a batterci contro il business che ruota attorno al traffico di esseri umani mascherato da falso umanitarismo. pic.twitter.com/f7AlanFotG
— Giorgia Meloni ???????? ن (@GiorgiaMeloni) March 1, 2021
In conjunction with the case, Lega party chief Matteo Salvini and Brothers of Italy leader Giorgia Meloni announced that „an urgent meeting with the prime minister and the interior minister is requested.” They also called on the government to devise a new immigration strategy as soon as possible.
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