Major police update as 70 migrants killed in Canary Islands 'sea murders'

Police have issued a major update this afternoon following the deaths of at least 70 migrantsin alleged "murders" as they tried to reach the Canary Islands.

Local authorities in Gran Canaria confirmed today that several arrests had been made as part of an ongoing criminal investigation after dozens of migrants died en route to the island. Around 320 people left on the boat in late August, and 248 people arrived in the Canary Islands.

It had been claimed that some were murdered and their bodies thrown into the Atlantic Ocean, with survivors alleging an unspecified number of victims were shot dead after the overloaded boat they were on suffered engine problems, okdiario reports.

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Authorities confirmed today arrests were made as part of an ongoing investigation that is now being co-ordinated by a court in the south of the holiday island. A National Police spokesman said: “With regards to the investigation opened following the rescue of a migrant boat en route to the Canary Islands last month, the number of fatalities cannot yet be officially estimated as the case is still under police investigation.

“Several people allegedly linked to these events were arrested yesterday. The detainees will be questioned by police before being brought before the courts in the coming days.

"National Police officers are continuing to carry out the necessary procedures to clarify what happened. Once information has been verified it will be passed on to the media."

Unconfirmed reports first published by Spanish news website Okdiario claimed between 20 and 30 migrants now in refugee centres in the Canaries are being investigated on suspicion of carrying out the high sea "executions".

The site reports they had accused fellow passengers of stealing water and then witchcraft as supplies on board dwindled, with the ship having spent more than a week adrift before it was rescued by Spanish officials.

Around 250 people were rescued west of the city of Dakhla in the disputed Western Sahara territory, 265 miles from the Canaries, following an August 24 alert from a passing merchant vessel.

Once they reached the shore at Arguineguin on Gran Canaria’s southern coast on August 25, survivors are said to have told investigators several migrants died of thirst and hunger and others threw themselves overboard after suffering delirium caused by dehydration.