The National Division for the Fight against Migrant Trafficking (DNLT) has referred five suspected smugglers to the Financial Prosecutor's Office in connection with a failed attempt at irregular migration to Spain. This follows an operation that saw the Senegalese Navy intercept 124 migrants at sea on October 13, 2025, who were handed over to the DNLT. According to Seneweb sources, there are 14 Senegalese, 85 Gambians, eight Guineans, one Bissau-Guinean, and 16 Malians. The composition of the group reveals the presence of particularly vulnerable individuals: 57 Gambians, 11 women, and 17 minors, including nine boys and eight girls.

The summary interviews conducted at the DNLT headquarters made it possible to reconstruct the migrants' journey. The group set sail from Barra, Gambia, on October 12, 2025, at 3 a.m. Less than ten hours later, around noon on October 13, the boat was intercepted by the Senegalese navy off the Gambian coast, approximately 50 nautical miles away.

Investigations identified five captains among the passengers, recruited specifically to sail the canoe to Spain. They are Youssoupha Faye, Mamadou Faye, Moussa Diouf, Seydina Aliou Niang, and Arfang Ngom. When questioned by investigators, they unequivocally admitted the charges against them. The captains named three individuals as the organizers of this migrant trafficking network.

Despite the searches undertaken, these three suspects could not be located before the investigation was closed. However, investigations are actively continuing.

Following the investigation, the five pirogue captains, Youssoupha Faye, Mamadou Faye, Moussa Diouf, Seydina Aliou Niang and Arfang Ngom, were brought before the public prosecutor at the Financial Judicial Pool on 16 October 2025 at 10 a.m.