EBN-A smuggling network network that is thought to have transported 1,700 migrants from Africa to France,Germany, and northern Europe has been dismantled by French investigators.
French and Spanish authorities conducted investigations to dismantle a criminal network smuggling people who migrate across the French-Spanish border. The operations resulted in the arrest of 15 individuals accused of belonging to this criminal organization.
“Fifteen arrests have been made in France and Spain,” prosecutor Nicolas Pisoni said in Marseille on Friday.
The dismantling of this gang took place after a lengthy and meticulous investigation conducted by investigators from the Office for Combating Illegal Trafficking in People who migrate, which took more than two years.
Smugglers typically transported migrants from Spain across the border through narrow mountain roads, then dropped them off in cities in southern France, Paris, and especially Germany.
Marseille prosecutor Nicolas Pisoni explained that “the smugglers were receiving between 150 euros ($163) and 300 euros per person for transporting them by car, and a hotel owner in Perpignan, southern France, was also involved in this illegal trade.”
The prosecutor stated that “the investigations began in Germany, where two French nationals were detained in July 2022 after smuggling People who migrate from Syria in a car.”
Investigators later “thwarted the network’s plan to smuggle People who migrate using a speedboat from Algeria to Spain.” The crossing was scheduled to cost €9,000 per person.
Le Figaro newspaper noted that the network was able to provide expensive means to achieve its goals, including large quantities of electronic equipment and light land transport vehicles.
The action day on 19 March led to:
- 6 arrests (5 in Germany and 1 in Italy) under Belgian judicial order
- 11 locations (8 houses and 3 storage spaces) searched in Germany
- Seizures include: 90 life vests, jerrycans, 2 firearms and more than 47 electronic devices.
The criminal network, active since 2023, transported nautical equipment from storage spaces in Germany to France. Drivers recruited via online platforms for this purpose transported the boats, jackets and other gear in modified vehicles with darkened windows and special compartments for the transportation of the equipment. The criminal network was highly coordinated, arranging several trips per day. The illicit proceeds were laundered via the Hawala underground banking system.
