Bulgarian Authorities Disrupt Organised Crime Group Trafficking Migrants to Western Europe, Smugglers Charged Up To 15, 000 Euros Per Person

Bulgarian authorities have disrupted an organised criminal group that was transporting migrants to Western Europe through Bulgaria.

The migrants—mainly from Syria, Iraq and Iran, including women and children—were moved across the country and routed onwards via Romania. The group operated under a strict hierarchy.

The organisation of the transport, as well as the payment, took place outside Bulgaria. Coordination was also carried out by higher-level individuals based abroad. However, police have evidence of Bulgarian involvement, including women who helped accommodate illegal migrants in flats where they waited for transport to Western Europe.

The group’s leaders recruited people to look after and house the migrants. Police discovered illegal alliens in private properties rented out by local landlords.

At a briefing by senior officials from the Chief Directorate for Combatting Organised Crime (GDBOP), the Border Police (GDBG) and the National Police (GDNP), it was announced that the Ministry of Interior’s special operation against illegal migration took place on 23 November.

In the course of the operation, leaders of an organised criminal group were arrested and more than 20 migrants residing illegally in the country were identified.

The profits generated by the group were substantial. Traffickers reportedly charged between €4,000 and €10,000–€15,000 per person, depending on how the migrants were to be transported to Western Europe—whether on foot across the border or hidden in vans and cars.

The operation was carried out under the direction of the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office and in coordination with Europol.