site.btaPolice Arrest Five Members of Organized Crime Group Transporting Migrants to Serbian Border

An organized criminal group transporting migrants to the Serbian border have been detained in a special police operation, conducted by the Border Police Directorate in cooperation with the Sofia Directorate of Interior, Sofia District Prosecutor Natalia Nikolova told a briefing at the Sofia District Prosecution Office on Thursday.

Nikolova confirmed that five individuals – one woman and four men – had been arrested on suspicion of involvement in the operation, with the youngest member of the group aged 21 and the oldest aged 33. She added that all five are unemployed, and four of them have previously been convicted of transporting migrants. Nikolova also noted that the group had been operating for around a year, primarily transporting migrants from Afghanistan and Pakistan. 

Chief Commissioner Anton Zlatanov, Director of the Border Police Directorate, said: “This is yet another such group that we have busted. The group had been active since mid-2024. We worked on this case together with the Sofia Directorate of Interior. These groups usually have several levels, with the organizer choosing the routes and coordinating with neighbouring countries."

He noted that searches had been carried out at thirteen addresses in Sofia Region. “In addition to money, we also found clothes made to resemble police uniforms with the words Police and Migration written on them,” Zlatanov added.

According to Zlatanov, members of the organized crime group used these “police” clothes to provide themselves with an alibi when travelling. “We also found trackers, which are small devices placed in a car or bag to allow movement to be tracked via a GPS system,” he added. He specified that the group charged each migrant between EUR 3,000 and EUR 5,000 for transport to the Serbian border. 

Chief Commissioner of the Sofia Directorate of Interior Lyubomir Nikolov noted that the group had been under surveillance since last year. "In June 2024, we received information about this group and used all means of operational control over the individuals in the group," he said.