German authorities carried out a major raid in several federal states against an international human trafficking gang, the public prosecutor's office in Kempten and the federal police crime investigation division in Munich announced, Trend reports citing Xinhua.
During the large-scale operation involving more than 400 officers, five arrest warrants were enforced and extensive evidence, in particular the smartphones used in the commission of the crime, were seized, according to a joint statement by the authorities.
A total of 19 suspects of Syrian, Lebanese and Libyan nationality were accused of smuggling refugees through the so-called Balkan route into Germany since at least April 2019, according to the statement.
In return for "large sums of money," around 140 people, mainly from Syria, were allegedly brought into Germany with vans and cars, according to the statement.
"The offenders proceeded in a highly planned and professional manner," the German authorities noted. The crime scenes were extensively scouted by the gang, vehicles drove ahead to report potential police checkpoints, and actual border crossings were often made by foot in sheltered terrain.
German police first learned of the smugglers in August 2019 after arresting a driver of the gang, according to the statement. Investigations were carried out in cooperation with the responsible investigative authorities in Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, the Netherlands, and with the support of Europol, the law enforcement agency of the European Union (EU).
The head of the international human trafficking gang had already been arrested in Austria in December. According to German authorities, his extradition from Austria was being requested.