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| Spanish court frees father of boy smuggled into Spain in suitcase | Spanish court frees father of boy smuggled into Spain in suitcase |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| The father of an Ivory Coast boy caught being smuggled into Spain in a suitcase last month has been freed on bail, allowing the family to be reunited. | The father of an Ivory Coast boy caught being smuggled into Spain in a suitcase last month has been freed on bail, allowing the family to be reunited. |
| A court ordered that Ali Ouattara be freed, hours after his eight-year-old son, Adou, was reunited with his mother at a youth centre where he has been cared for since border police in Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta discovered him on 7 May in the suitcase of a Moroccan woman. | A court ordered that Ali Ouattara be freed, hours after his eight-year-old son, Adou, was reunited with his mother at a youth centre where he has been cared for since border police in Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta discovered him on 7 May in the suitcase of a Moroccan woman. |
| Related: X-ray scan at Spanish border finds child stashed inside suitcase | Related: X-ray scan at Spanish border finds child stashed inside suitcase |
| Police images of the scanned case shocked many and highlighted the plight of migrants trying to reach Europe. | Police images of the scanned case shocked many and highlighted the plight of migrants trying to reach Europe. |
| The father, who lives with the mother legally in Spain, was arrested hours after the Adou was discovered and jailed on rights abuse charges for trying to have him smuggled into the country. Through his lawyer, the father has said he knew nothing of the suitcase plan, believing his son was to be brought in by car with a visa he had paid for. The Moroccan woman, who was unrelated to the boy, was also detained. | The father, who lives with the mother legally in Spain, was arrested hours after the Adou was discovered and jailed on rights abuse charges for trying to have him smuggled into the country. Through his lawyer, the father has said he knew nothing of the suitcase plan, believing his son was to be brought in by car with a visa he had paid for. The Moroccan woman, who was unrelated to the boy, was also detained. |
| Spanish authorities allowed the mother to take custody of Adou after DNA tests proved they were related. | Spanish authorities allowed the mother to take custody of Adou after DNA tests proved they were related. |
| The father was allowed to leave jail after his wife paid €5,000 in bail at the court in Ceuta. | |
| Francesco Luca Caronna, a member of the law firm acting for the family, said on Tuesday that Ouattara remains charged with human rights abuse against a foreign citizen. | |
| “If he had known his son was to be brought in in a case he would never have allowed it,” said the lawyer. “He is a victim of migrant traffickers.” | |
| Ouattara must surrender his passport and appear before the court each month until the trial, which is not expected for several months. | |
| The father has been living legally on Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands for seven years. His Ivorian wife had joined him and they were trying to bring over two of their children. His lawyer said an 11-year-old daughter had been allowed in recently but Ouattara’s monthly salary fell short of the amount authorities required to care for two children. It was then that the father bought the visa. | The father has been living legally on Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands for seven years. His Ivorian wife had joined him and they were trying to bring over two of their children. His lawyer said an 11-year-old daughter had been allowed in recently but Ouattara’s monthly salary fell short of the amount authorities required to care for two children. It was then that the father bought the visa. |
| Adou was found in the suitcase after Guardia Civil agents noticed that a 19-year-old woman was reluctant to pass through border controls at Ceuta, and asked her to place her fuchsia-coloured, wheeled suitcase in an x-ray machine, expecting to find drugs or illegal merchandise inside. Instead, the figure of a child was clearly outlined in the x-ray. When guards opened the bag, the boy emerged scared and confused, telling authorities that his name was Adou, he was eight and from the Ivory Coast. | Adou was found in the suitcase after Guardia Civil agents noticed that a 19-year-old woman was reluctant to pass through border controls at Ceuta, and asked her to place her fuchsia-coloured, wheeled suitcase in an x-ray machine, expecting to find drugs or illegal merchandise inside. Instead, the figure of a child was clearly outlined in the x-ray. When guards opened the bag, the boy emerged scared and confused, telling authorities that his name was Adou, he was eight and from the Ivory Coast. |
| Each year thousands of migrants risk their lives to cross into Spain through the northern Africa enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, hoping to find a better life in Europe. Last year, fewer than 5,000 were successful in making it across the border. As Spanish authorities step up efforts to crack down on the migrants, many have become more creative, resorting to hiding in false-bottomed cars or in shipping containers. | Each year thousands of migrants risk their lives to cross into Spain through the northern Africa enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, hoping to find a better life in Europe. Last year, fewer than 5,000 were successful in making it across the border. As Spanish authorities step up efforts to crack down on the migrants, many have become more creative, resorting to hiding in false-bottomed cars or in shipping containers. |