With support of the two Regional IPA projects dealing with police and prosecutors’ co-operation between the Western Balkan countries, an organised crime group dedicated to trafficking in human beings was dismantled.
The two projects supported the months-long investigation named KASHMIR conducted by a Joint Investigation Team formed between Serbia, Hungary and Austria.
Serbian police (the Department for the fight against organized crime within the Serbian Police Directorate) searched a number of apartments and other premises on 13 locations scattered around Belgrade, Kragujevac and Odzak, used by a group of persons suspected of belonging to an organized criminal group. Nine persons were arrested in this police action. As part of the same operation four persons were arrested in Austria and other three in Hungary, all suspected of being part of the same criminal organization dedicated to trafficking in human beings.
This criminal group is alleged to have transferred illegally over 400 migrants/refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, Eritrea and Iraq in the period between April and September 2015.
The migrants/refugees, each paying some 1,200 euro, were transported on the Belgrade-Horgos route, from where they would cross the so-called “Green Line” to reach Hungary.
More than EUR 270 thousand and a smaller amount of US Dollars were confiscated during the search. Investigators also blocked bank accounts holding almost EUR 80 thousand and more than 200 thousand Serbian Dinars. In addition, a gun, an air rifle, some 9 grams of cannabis, a certain quantity of dried marijuana and 3 stems of this illicit plant, a vehicle, 27 mobile phones, 26 SIM cards, and a tablet were also confiscated.
The suspects were detained in jail on charges of illegal border-crossing and trafficking in human beings, and are awaiting trial.
