Four Ukrainians and a Pole formed a gang smuggling mediate east migrants

An organized crime group, which was worked out by border guards from Bielsko-Biała, utilized a network of connections and carefully planned logistics to smuggle migrants from the mediate East to Germany.

For the chance to scope Western Europe foreigners paid from a 1000 to even 7 1000 euros. The group, consisting of 4 Ukrainian citizens and 1 Pole, allowed at least 21 illegal border crossings by organising a spread of not little than 119 people, mainly Syrians. Migrants travelled from Syria through Turkey, Greece, Serbia, Hungary and Slovakia, all the way to Poland, and their eventual goal was Germany. The transfer was carried out utilizing passenger cars and buses, and the following settlement only after reaching the site indicates the operation of a complex strategy based on trust or intermediaries.

The first detention took place in September 2023. At the time, SG officers stopped on the S1 bus route, which was traveled by 11 Syrian citizens. The driver was Ukrainian. Shortly thereafter, a akin situation occurred in Hungarian Górka: another 11 Syrians and 2 Ukrainians organizing transport. Investigators did not halt at single arrests. The evidence collected for many months allowed to identify and capture further members of the group. A citizen of Poland and a citizen of Ukraine was detained in Gliwice, where ammunition was secured in the apartment. The Prosecutor of the National Prosecutor's Office in Rzeszów decided to prosecute 5 people. The case went to the Bielsko-Biała territory Court. All suspects were temporarily arrested. The scale of the process and the amounts paid by migrants indicate the large profits made by the group, which acted methodically and without scruples. The Border defender and the D.A. stress that the fight against specified crime is simply a priority, especially in the context of border safety and the fight against global smuggling networks.

Photo by: strazbrzyczna.pl