Caught at the Austrian border with Germany: Ukrainian smugglers squeeze eleven children between garbage bags

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On Thursday, the German federal police made a scandalous discovery at the border crossing to Hörbranz in Austria. In a van with a Ukrainian license plate, officers found fifteen people crammed next to each other in the vehicle.

The two smugglers, a Ukrainian couple, had attempted to illegally bring a large family of thirteen people from Ukraine across the border, as “Bild” reported. They seemed to have little concern for the safety of the migrants. Of the eleven children in the back of the vehicle, only some were strapped in and placed in a child seat. Meanwhile, piles of luggage and plastic bags piled up behind them. The vehicle was actually only registered for nine people.

Confusion about actual destination

During the subsequent police check, the driver (38) and his passenger (37), who have a registered place of residence in East Frisia, identified themselves with their Ukrainian passport and German residence permit. Initial investigation results show that the man has Hungarian and Ukrainian citizenship. However, as a Ukrainian he would have applied for asylum in Germany at the time.

The extended family was also already registered in Lörrach, Germany. Both the parents and the children, aged between one and sixteen, had a valid Ukrainian passport and a temporary residence permit, which had since expired. As the “Presseportal” reports, in the subsequent investigation, the adults contradicted each other several times about the travel destination, the formation of the car pool and the consideration for the trip.

The police assume that the smugglers should have taken the family to Munich. However, the extended family claim they wanted to travel back to Ukraine via Germany, with the parents promising the two drivers 1,000 euros for the journey.

Family handed over to immigration authorities

The incident now has legal consequences for both the Ukrainian driver couple and the family. The driver was charged with attempting to smuggle foreigners under life-threatening conditions, fraud and withholding documents.

His wife, the owner of the vehicle, must answer for attempts to smuggle in foreigners. The extended family, on the other hand, were reported for attempting to enter the country without permission and handed over to immigration authorities. (ced)

Source: Blick