The Local Directorate for Border and Migration (DVKM) of Vlora has fully clarified the incident that occurred the day before near the island of Sazan, where 11 illegal immigrants from third countries risked drowning in the open sea while traveling on a dinghy. The police have identified and arrested the organizer of this failed trafficking attempt towards Italy, who was himself on board.
Afghan citizen ME, 43, has been arrested and charged with the criminal offense of "Aid for illegal border crossing." Meanwhile, the other 10 clandestine people who were rescued from the raft - citizens from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Liberia and Haiti - have been prosecuted for "Illegal border crossing."
Through the quick and professional actions carried out by the Crime Investigation specialists at the Vlora DVKM, in cooperation with the Prosecution, the entire route and scheme used by the traffic network has been documented:
Organization in Greece: The 43-year-old Afghan had started the plan from the neighboring country, Greece, where he had organized the illegal entry of 10 immigrants into Albanian territory through the green border.
Coordination with the Albanian: After entering Albania, the Afghan collaborated with an Albanian citizen (still unidentified). The latter sent him a coordinate (location) in the Seman area of Fier on his phone.
Taking the dinghy: The Afghan went to Seman, took the dinghy that the Albanian had made available to him and put the 10 clandestines on board, with the intention of heading towards the Italian coast, a journey that was interrupted near Sazan after the risk of drowning.
The Border Police and investigative structures in Vlora, under the direction of the Prosecutor's Office, are continuing intensive investigations with special methods to track down the Albanian citizen who secured the vessel. They are also working to discover whether there are other people implicated in this clandestine smuggling cell that used Albania as a gateway to European Union countries.
