Bulgarian Police Arrest 92 People for Trying to Smuggle Immigrants From Turkey via Bulgaria – SchengenVisaInfo.com

A total of 92 people have been arrested by Europol, accused of smuggling immigrants from Turkey through Bulgaria to Serbia and then to Western Europe.

With the support of Europol, the Bulgarian authorities investigated cases against organised crime groups involved in smuggling immigrants, which checked 624 locations, 4,202 vehicles, and 7,019 persons, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

In addition, Bulgarian investigations were also coordinated with Turkish and Serbian authorities and other partner agencies.

“The joint actions took place across Bulgaria and focused on a number of networks smuggling migrants from Türkiye, via Bulgaria, to Serbia and then Western Europe. The main organisers of the networks active along this route are based in Bulgaria, Serbia, and Türkiye,” the statement issued by Europol reads.

Organisers have also established their own national networks of members responsible for transport and accommodation in their respective countries.

As the authority explains, the smugglers used vehicles such as vans, campers, and buses for transportation.

Meanwhile, the total smuggling service prices in larger groups were between €2,000 and €3,000 per person.

On the other hand, if the immigrants were smuggled into smaller groups, including five or six people, the payments would reach up to €10,000. Meanwhile, payments for the full trip would be made after the main Turkish organiser had confirmed that the migrants had entered the Bulgarian-Serbian border.

Moreover, the Bulgarian authorities have announced that their country has witnessed an increase in migrant smuggling activities on their southern border.

In August last year, an incident involving a bus carrying irregular migrants was reported in Bulgaria, leading to the death of two police officers on duty.

In 2022, an officer of the Bulgarian Border Police was also shot dead during regular patrolling on the green border with Turkey. The incidents indicate an increase in both smuggling activities and the violence of the criminal networks involved.

In the same year, Europol increased its support to the Bulgarian authorities by deploying dedicated analysts. In addition, on the day of action, January 16, Europol sent an expert to Sofia to provide real-time analytical support and check operational information against Europol’s databases.

However, this week’s operation was coordinated by the Bulgarian Public Prosecutor, the General Directorate for Combating Organised Crime, as well as the National Police and the Border Police, targeted criminal networks active along the Balkan route.