Members of an international human trafficking organisation were arrested on Wednesday, officials from the Bruges division of the West Flanders announced on Thursday.
A key suspect was detained in Italy, while five others were apprehended in Germany. A key member of the group had already been detained by a Bruges investigating judge on 10 March.
Police in West Flanders regularly seize shipments of nautical equipment used by human trafficking gangs to cross the English Channel to the UK.
Through these interceptions, investigators from the West Flanders federal judicial police, assisted by Europol and their French and German counterparts, uncovered the criminal organisation behind the logistics behind these crossings.
The gang had been helping people cross the channel since at least autumn 2023. The investigation also led to the discovery of several warehouses of equipment in Germany.
At the request of the Bruges investigating judge, 11 raids were carried out in Germany on Wednesday, primarily in the Essen and Duisburg regions. Five men, aged between 21 and 32, were arrested, and authorities seized 90 life jackets, jerrycans, firearms, and nearly 50 electronic devices.
At the same time, Italian police arrested a key suspect, a 34-year-old Iraqi citizen, in the Calabria region. The Bruges investigating judge issued a European arrest warrant and requested the extradition of all six men.
Another key suspect, a 25-year-old Iraqi, was already arrested at Charleroi Airport on 10 March while attempting to board a flight to Greece.
