SW News: German police busted a human trafficking network and took six suspects into custody after raids were conducted across the country as well as in Romania, and Bulgaria. The network was allegedly responsible for transporting hundreds of people under inhumane conditions.

The federal police said the accused are suspected of trafficking more than 560 persons into Germany and over 300 migrants to Romania.

The investigation into the ring got underway after accounts from Turkish and Syrian nationals in the border areas of Austria, the Czech Republic, and Poland were gathered.

The so-called Balkans route was thought to have been used to transport the migrants to Germany. After being transported from Timisoara, Romania, they were allegedly made to remain concealed amid the cargo in trucks under inhumane conditions for several days.

Four of the suspects were arrested in Romania. Other two suspects were also apprehended: one in Bulgaria and one in Germany.

Investigators claimed to have found evidence during the raids, including three high-value cars, many mobile phones, and cash.

The operation involved close to 200 cops, including 130 in Germany alone. Germany has experienced a resurgence in the number of asylum seekers over the past year after seeing a significant influx in 2015–2016. In Germany, the rights and obligations of asylum seekers and the responsible authorities are defined by the Asylum Act. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees is responsible for the examination of asylum applications.

Data from the EU's statistics agency Eurostat show that during the European migrant crisis from 2015 to 2017, Germany processed over 1.4 million asylum claims. Last month, the Olaf Scholz government committed to stronger steps, including new collaborations with the incoming immigrants' home nations to send them back. In 2021, more than 4,900 people were picked up at the German-Polish border who had entered the European Union illegally via Belarus, Germany's federal police said this week.