site.btaPolice in Edirne Prevent Migrants and Members of FETO Terrorist Group from Illegally Crossing into Bulgaria

Four migrants and five people suspected of being members of the banned terrorist organization FETO in Turkiye were detained on Sunday near the city of Edirne by Turkish security forces while attempting to illegally cross into Bulgaria. Two people assisting illegal trafficking were also detained.

According to information from the news channel of the Turkish public television and radio TRT Haber, the operation was carried out by teams from the departments for combating terrorism, smuggling and illegal trafficking from the Edirne security forces.

Following a signal received by the police, the teams tracked two cars that were traveling to the Kapikule border checkpoint on the Turkish-Bulgarian border.

Four people traveling in one of the cars were left on the road. Upon inspection, it was found that they were illegal migrants from Afghanistan. During the interrogation, they revealed that in Istanbul they had agreed with the driver to take them to the border, from where they would illegally cross into Bulgaria.

The driver was arrested in the Edirne region. After an interrogation, he was handed over to the court on charges of illegal trafficking. The migrants were handed over to the regional migration directorate to be sent back.

In the other car, which the teams stopped for inspection, five people were found, suspected of having ties to the  Fethullah Terrorist Organisation (FETO). They intended to cross into Bulgaria across the border near Edirne.

The five detainees, as well as the driver, were arrested and handed over to the judicial authorities.

In another operation by the security forces in Istanbul, which the Demirören News Agency reported, two Turkish citizens were detained while trying to flee to Bulgaria.

They are suspected of using illegal weapons in an incident at an Istanbul bar, which also left people injured. When the police arrived, the two managed to escape in a car. The investigation revealed that one of them had a criminal record and was preparing to flee to Bulgaria. They were detained in the area of ​​​​the Turkish-Bulgarian border before fleeing to Bulgaria and handed over to the judicial authorities.