Six charged after 18 migrants found dead in abandoned truck near Sofia

Six people have been charged for the deaths of the 18 migrants found in an abandoned lorry near the village of Lokorsko, Sofia district on Friday. According to investigators, the traffickers were an organised criminal group that had been transporting illegal migrants across the country's territory from at least the beginning of last year until yesterday. All the accused have thick previous criminal records and the group's leader has been known to Ministry of Interior authorities since 1997. He has been convicted multiple times.

The migrants were literally crammed in the lorry, like in a tin can. They were waiting in a wooded area close to Bulgaria’s border with Turkey in the area between Malko Tarnovo and Zvezdets.

This has not been the first time the lorry travelled the distance to Sofia via Trakia motorway. This time, however, there were about twice as many people in the concealment than it would normally have been possible to fit. The lack of oxygen and even the lack of possibility of normal chest movement was the cause of the fatal result.

The last journey for some of the illegal migrants began yesterday morning. Around 7 o'clock, the driver of the lorry and his assistant were at an agreed location near our border with Turkey. They received the coordinates of the group via the Telegram app and 10 minutes later they were picking up 52 men aged 13 to 35 in the hidden compartments of the lorry.

“They had been crammed into the truck "like in a tin can" and the movements of the chest and abdomen were severely restricted," explained Borislav Sarafov, Deputy Chief Prosecutor and Head of the National Investigation Service on February 18.

“Lack of oxygen in an enclosed space was the cause of death for 18 of the illegal migrants,” forensic doctors said in their conclusion.

"Suffocation caused by oxygen depletion in a confined space. The victims died slowly and painfully, each dying in 30 to 60 minutes," Sarafov said.

According to the evidence gathered so far, the illegal migrants desperately sought help and rescue during the journey, even at the risk of being detained by the police.

"Travelling on Trakia motorway, shortly after Trajanov Gate, a loud banging and noise was heard. The two drivers, however, continued driving the lorry, as in the area around the village of. Lokorsko, where the accident took place, the banging increased tremendously. The drivers realised that there was a problem. Then they pulled over to where we found the truck. They drove it into the mud. They went to see what was going on and saw that many of the migrants were dizzy and some had died," Sarafov said.

At that point, the driver and his assistant abandoned the lorry and the migrants and fled. They took public transport to the central bus station and from there a bus to Burgas and returned to the village of Kableshkovo, where they were detained that night. The organiser and two of his assistants were arrested near Sofia.

"This is an organised crime group involved in smuggling by accepting migrants from the border with Turkey, which by the way is very easy to cross with the help of a simple ladder. Trucks with hidden compartments are used to transport the migrants from the Turkish border to the area around the Serbian border," Sarafov explained.

The final destination was Western European countries, mainly the UK, Germany and France. For the smuggling through Bulgaria, the payments were 5 to 7 thousand euros, by the "hawala" method, the money was left in certain foreign exchange bureaus or shops in Turkey and released when the group was handed over to the Serbian leader in Serbia.

"The drivers received only 100 euros per migrant transported. The leader of the group was taking larger sums, in the range of 500 to 1,000 euros per person. In this case, probably out of greed, too many migrants were picked up, 52 of them. In previous cases, they usually transported 25 - 30 to 35 migrants," Sarafov said.

The organised criminal group has been smuggling migrants since at least the beginning of last year, evidence shows. They made at least two trips a month, transporting a group every week during the summer and autumn.

"We were able to get to these perpetrators very quickly and carry out all those operational and investigative actions that led to these individuals," explained Atanas Ilkov, Head of the national police.

Seven suspects have been detained, but 6 have been charged so far, for alleged involvement in an organised criminal group and for trafficking, and the driver and his assistant - for causing death due to a reckless act.

"The investigation is a dynamic process and most likely there will be more persons brought to criminal responsibility and also new charges," said Hristo Krastev, Deputy head of Sofia city Prosecutor’s office.

The investigators are gathering evidence on the group's activities from the beginning of last year until yesterday.

"Yesterday was a bad day for Bulgaria and for us as Bulgarians. Those 18 young people who died and many others who suffered are the result of the disintegration of institutions. From the war between the institutions from the destruction of the Ministry of Interior by a previous Minister of the Interior," said Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev.

According to the Ministry of the Interior and the Prosecutor's office, changes in the law and higher penalties for smuggling are badly needed, as currently most sentences are conditional and do not stop smugglers.

Caretaker Health Minister Medzhidiev said that 19 migrants remain in hospital, but their condition is not life-threatening. The other 13 have already been discharged and are being accommodated at a refugee agency's centre at “Voenna Rampa”, where they are also being helped by a psychologist, Minister Assen Medzhidiev told a briefing.

Five arrested in connection with the death of 18 migrants in a lorry near Sofia

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