A Moroccan man has suffocated to death inside a suitcase in an attempt to enter Spain without proper papers.
The unnamed man, who was 27, stowed away inside a suitcase which was in the boot of a car belonging to his 34-year-old brother.
Both men and the car were on board a ferry from the Spanish enclave of Melilla in Morocco to Almeria on the Spanish mainland on Sunday evening, according to the civil guard, a journey of five hours.
As the ferry approached its destination, the brother went to check on the stowaway and found him “suffering from asphyxia”, the civil guard said.
A medical team on shore attempted to revive him but were not successful.
The older brother is being held under arrest in Almeria.
Both Spanish enclaves of Melilla and Ceuta (pictured) have become the targets for undocumented migrants to enter Spain. From Moroccan territory migrants frequently attempt to scale the six-metre-high fences surrounding the enclaves, or by smuggling themselves in secret compartments in cars. Others try to swim or use inflatable dinghies to get around the border.
Last year, at least 7,000 undocumented migrants were intercepted trying to penetrate the border to reach Spain.
Once in, however, means the migrants have reached European territory. What is unusual in this case is that migrants do not often risk travelling from Ceuta or Melilla to the mainland.
