The German Police arrested two Turkish nationals suspected of attempting to smuggle 28 migrants in a refrigerated truck on March 30, 2024, into Germany.
That evening, police inspected a Mercedes Benz semi-truck with a refrigerated trailer coming from Czechia, according to a press release by the German authorities. More specifically, the inspection occurred at the Bahratal checkpoint, SchengenVisaInfo reports.
The Federal police further said that after opening the refrigerated trailer, the emergency services found 28 people in pallets including unaccompanied minors, and detected a strong odour of faeces. The illegal migrants were nationals of Syria, Iraq, Egypt, and Türkiye.
The Smuggled Individuals Faced Life-Threatening Situations
The German police further revealed that many of the smuggled migrants were found in poor conditions and also faced life-threatening situations.
Many of those smuggled were dehydrated and received on-site assistance. They had to relieve themselves in plastic bottles. The smuggled individuals were subjected to life-threatening conditions during the journey, as the transporter had no windows for light or ventilation and was only ventilated electrically, with ventilation reportedly failing multiple times during the journey.
Of the 28 smuggled migrants, 23 applied for asylum and were relocated to a reception centre in Saxony. The police further said that minors were transferred over to the youth welfare office, while five individuals were sent back to Czechia.
The suspects, aged 26 and 52, who were arrested on March 30, have been in custody since then and now are being investigated by the Dresden public prosecutor’s office and the federal police.
At the request of the Dresden public prosecutor’s office, the investigating judge at the Dresden District Court issued arrest warrants against both accused the following day. They have been in custody ever since. The vehicle used in the crime was seized and towed away.
In 2023, Germany Received the Highest Number of Asylum Applications Among EU Countries
In 2023, the EU countries received more than 1.1 million asylum applications, according to statistics revealed by the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA). Meanwhile, Germany emerged as the EU country with the highest number of asylum seekers, recording 334,000 applications.
In 2023, Germany (334,000) remained the leading destination of asylum seekers in the EU+, receiving nearly a third of all applications. In fact, Germany received more applications than France (167 000) and Spain (162 000) combined.
Germany Has Extended Internal Border Controls with Czechia, Poland & Switzerland Over Irregular Migration Concerns
In February 2024, Germany decided to prolong internal border controls with Czechia, Poland, and Switzerland until June 15. The measure was initially introduced first October 2023 and has been extended several times, prompted by concerns over irregular migration.
The Federal Minister of Interior, Nancy Faeser, said the prolongation of the measure is necessary to prevent illegal migration to Germany and uncover people smuggling migrants to the country through illegal channels.
