France has exposed a network of people smugglers who have been organizing illegal entry into Europe for people from Asia, charging from 15,000 to 26,000 euros per person for their services. This network has been working for years.
France arrests 26 alleged migrant smugglers
According to BFMTV, the investigation resulted in the arrest of 26 alleged members of the network and the seizure of assets worth 11 million euros in the form of jewelry, expensive cars, and other property.
These arrests are the result of a major investigation into the organization of illegal migration to the EU from India and neighboring countries.
Investigators estimate that since September 2021, the network has helped thousands of people from India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal enter the EU without legal grounds for stay. The charges for their services ranged from 15 thousand to 26 thousand euros.
“The smugglers facilitated the entry of migrants into the EU through Dubai or African countries, bypassing the law by obtaining tourist, work, or medical visas for them,” said Julien Gentile, a representative of the border police department in Roissy.
The suspected network leader remains at large in Dubai, and extradition requests are stalled.
Poland disclosed a criminal group that helped foreigners legalize their stay in the country
Earlier, Poland disclosed a scheme to legalize the stay of foreign nationals in Poland. The Central Bureau of Investigation and border guards have detained two suspects who are believed to be involved in an organized criminal group that helped legalize the stay of foreigners in Poland.
The detainees are a 27-year-old Polish citizen and a 30-year-old Ukrainian. They are suspected of participating in an organized criminal group and extorting administrative decisions allowing foreigners to illegally obtain temporary residence permits and work permits in Poland, RFM24 reported.
The group is believed to have been active from 2017 to 2019 and helped several hundred citizens of Ukraine, Georgia, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal legalize their stay. The fraudsters created documents purportedly confirming employment, which subsequently led to the customers receiving a residence permit.
Romania disclosed a network that produced fake Romanian documents for migrants
In Romania authorities disclosed a large network that produced fake Romanian documents for individuals from Ukraine, Moldova, and the Russian Federation, registering them in abandoned Romanian homes.
According to the investigation, the criminals acted in cooperation with officials of two city halls in the east of the country—in the county of Botosani near the borders with Ukraine and Moldova, Digi24 reported.
The fraudsters searched for abandoned houses whose owners had died or emigrated and, with the help of city hall officials, produced fake Romanian IDs, which they then sold to citizens of Ukraine, Moldova, and Russia for 350–400 euros and registered them at the addresses of deceased Romanians.
Last week, the General’s Office carried out 90 searches in a case in which public officials from Botoșani County are suspected of taking bribes to issue false identity documents for citizens from Moldova, Ukraine, and Russia. Only one community in the Botosani district produced 10,000 such documents.
The documents certify the residence of these people at different addresses, without the owners’ knowledge, by making false statements. Documents could arbitrarily change names, places of birth, and other details. Occasionally, individuals registered in locations that were obviously not residential.
