AGRIGENTO. Twenty-three Tunisian fishermen, including 2 minors, were arrested by the Finance Guard and the Coast Guard on charges of aiding illegal immigration. They make up the crew of the Tunisian fishing boat «Hadj Mhamed» of 27 meters which, according to the accusation, carried migrants who were then put on boats and sent to the coast of Sicily. The fishing boat carries out fishing with nets with the help of small boats and was intercepted at 19.30 in Italian waters and was escorted to Lampedusa (Ag). Two crew members, for reasons still unclear, threw themselves into the water, but were recovered.
The fishing boat was seized by the military of the naval operational section of the Yellow Flames of Lampedusa and by the harbor authority. The 23 are accused of illegally transporting 5 compatriots who had paid 4,000 dinars each to be brought from the coast near the port of Mahdia (Tunisia) to Lampedusa, using the “mother ship” system. The 5 migrants – according to the accusation – a few miles from Lampedusa were then taken on one of the 3 motor boats available to the fishing boat and directed towards the Agrigento island. According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the 23 Tunisian fishermen rounded off by making smugglers. The investigation is coordinated by Deputy Prosecutor Salvatore Vella and prosecutor Gloria Andreoli.
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