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Migrants:smuggler network dismantled by Romanian authorities

Up to 10,000 euro to cross the Balkans via Romania

30 July, 16:26
(ANSA) - BELGRADE, JUL 30 - Police authorities in Romania have dismantled an organized crime group involved in migrant smuggling across the Balkans, Europol informed today.

The criminal network, active since October 2020 and active also iun the involved in other criminal activities as well, such as drug trafficking, included Egyptian, Iraqi, Syrian and Romanian citizens and had cells in the countries across the Balkan route. Its main goal was to transport migrants from Jordan, Iran, Iraq and Syria to Western Europe, mostly to Germany. Several criminal cells based in Romania facilitated the border crossing from Bulgaria and Serbia of groups of migrants and arranged their temporary accommodation in the area of Bucharest and in western Romania.

The migrants were then smuggled to Hungary on their way to Germany. In total, 26 illegal transports of migrants were intercepted and 490 migrants were detected in an attempt to illegally cross the Romanian border. Migrants were paying between 4,000 and 10,000 euros, depending on the trafficking segment used, Europol said. (ANSA).

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