The judge María Eulalia Chanfreut has rejected the appeals of two crew members of a narco boat who were initially investigated for the murder of agents Miguel Ángel González and David Pérez in the port of Barbate (Cádiz) on February 9th. Despite being cleared of murder charges by a report from the Guardia Civil in May, they will remain in custody on charges of smuggling within a criminal organization and resisting a police officer. The judge has stated that these charges could lead to sentences of up to eight and a half years in prison.
The pilot of the boat, Francisco Javier M. P., also known as Kiko El Cabra, has been denied release on bail by the judge, following the prosecution’s stance. The judge is still pending a decision on the appeals of the other three occupants of the narco boat who were also imprisoned for the same incident. The Provincial Court of Cádiz is also yet to resolve the appeals filed by the accused in the same direction.
The two crew members, Mustafá C. and David N. G., denied being on board the boat that collided with the Guardia Civil patrol boat, leading to the deaths of two agents and injuries to four others. They claimed to have been refuging from a storm in another narco boat in Barbate port and fled the scene after the incident. Mustafá C. even claimed to know the pilot of the boat that attacked the agents, identified as “Khaled”, and described the occupants as Moroccan.
The defenses of both individuals requested their provisional release after it was revealed by a police report that their boat was not the one involved in the collision with the Guardia Civil. However, the judge maintained that the risk of flight remained high as the charges they still face are serious. The judge pointed out that one of the individuals, David N., has a criminal record and is being investigated in two other judicial procedures.
Judge Chanfreut, who is temporarily assigned to the Barbate courts and previously handled this case, emphasized that the alleged roots of the detainees in Cádiz were not sufficient to eliminate the risk of flight. She took into account their criminal records and pending cases when denying bail. The investigation is now focused on identifying the occupants of the narco boat that actually collided with the Guardia Civil vessel.
