Searches due to smuggling crime
During searches of six homes and a commercial unit in Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia in connection with people smuggling, around 100 officers from the Federal Police, supported by special units and the customs administration, executed an arrest warrant. According to a statement on Thursday, cash-sniffing dogs were also involved in the operation in the early hours of the morning.
The investigators from the Landshut public prosecutor's office and the Munich federal police were specifically targeting the financial structures of a smuggling organization. An arrest warrant had been issued for one of the suspected main perpetrators. In addition, 13,000 euros in cash, cell phones and laptops were seized.
The operation was preceded by the evaluation of evidence seized during searches in July, which had brought to light the smuggling organization's concealed flow of money. According to the evidence, the smuggling ring consisted not only of organizers and drivers, but is also said to have had financial specialists.
The financial specialists in the smuggling organization could potentially face charges related to money laundering, given the illegal nature of their crimes. The seized cash and financial records from the recent operation will likely play a significant role in any future financial investigations related to migration smuggling.
Source: www.dpa.com
