Five arrested in raid against alleged human-trafficking group
Investigators in Germany and Switzerland have arrested five men suspected of belonging to a criminal organisation. The group is suspected of bringing hundreds of people into Germany illegally and collecting large sums of money for doing so.
Five arrested in raid against alleged human-trafficking group
In a joint operation by German and Swiss authorities, five men were taken into custody. The suspects are accused of belonging to a criminal association that is suspected of systematically trafficking people across borders. Three of those arrested were apprehended in the Ruhr region, Lower Saxony and the capital; another was arrested in western Switzerland.
The men, aged 25 to 45, are believed to be of Syrian and Lebanese origin and are suspected of having been among the senior figures in the network. They are accused of being responsible for transporting 164 people – including more than a dozen minors – between autumn 2023 and spring 2024. The total number of people estimated to have been brought into Germany by the organisation is put at over 700. They are suspected of having demanded substantial sums of money for this.
The case first came to the attention of investigators in 2023 when thirty people were discovered in the cargo holds of commercial vehicles in Lower Bavaria. The region around Passau apparently served as an important transit point. Investigators suspect that those affected were exposed to acute danger to their lives and health during the journeys.
Two other members of the group already have final court judgements against them. The chambers at Landshut and Passau imposed multi-year prison sentences in these proceedings. In addition, four other defendants are being held in prisons in south-eastern Europe and Kosovo and are awaiting either their extradition or trial there.
The suspects now arrested are to be brought before judges within the next few days. These judges must decide whether to order pre-trial detention. The responsible public prosecutor's office in Lower Bavaria is simultaneously preparing an extradition request for the man arrested in Switzerland.
Source: n-tv
Source: n-tv