An international law enforcement operation has dismantled a gang of people-smugglers responsible for trafficking 700 migrants from Turkey through Bulgaria and Serbia to parts of the EU.
The Syrian-led gang in one incident smuggled 150 people in the back of a lorry, according to the EU's law enforcement agency Europol.
Eight members of the syndicate, including a high-value target, were detained by officers in Bulgaria after raids on 11 locations.
The raids follow the arrest of another Syrian people-smuggling gang that charged migrants from the Middle East €10,000 ($10,835) to be taken across Europe, in Romania earlier this year.
According to Europol, the latest gang to be targeted charged migrants in Istanbul between €3,000 and €5,000. They were then smuggled by guides connected to Turkish members of the criminal network. Once in Bulgarian territory, the migrants were picked up by Bulgarian, Romanian and Syrian drivers who transported them to accommodation in Sofia.
The smuggling network moved migrants in cars, vans and even lorries when the demand was high and they wanted to maximise profit. “In one case, the suspects transported 150 migrants in a lorry,” Europol said.
The Balkans is the main artery for migrants seeking to enter Europe from the Middle East. The migrants then make their way further into the continent and some cross the English Channel in small boats.
The drivers transported the migrants at high speed to escape police checks, “putting the lives of migrants and bystanders at great risk”, officials said.
The investigation also involved Greek and Romanian authorities and was conducted as part of a taskforce set up to investigate migrant smuggling networks using Bulgaria as a transit country. Extensive analysis was carried out to identify the targets and map their criminal activities, says Europol.
It was initiated at the beginning of 2023 when Bulgarian authorities found migrants smuggled by the network and, so far, law enforcement authorities have detected 15 smuggling incidents. Payments to the gang were made using the hawala system, an anonymous banking practice that is also a common method of payment for foreign workers to send money around the world.
The system is based on trust in brokers, or hawaladars, who immediately receive and release money in another destination. Hawala accountancy notebooks and documents, as well as cash, were found by police.
When the Syrian alleged gang leader was arrested in Romania, in July, officers found nine migrants and 21 from Syria in safe houses waiting to be taken to western Europe. Germany was a common final destination. As well as being a popular country for migrants, Germany is used by gangs looking to transport asylum seekers through France, then across the English Channel.
Refugee rights organisation Collective Aid has reported an increased number of Syrians using the Balkans to reach western Europe. The NGO said the increase was due to crackdowns by the Syrian government and food insecurity. The latest statistics from the EU Agency for Asylum showed that last year, Syrians submitted 181,000 applications to gain access to the bloc, a 38 per cent increase compared to 2022.
