Bulgaria breaks up illegal immigrant smuggling network

Bulgarian law enforcement authorities on Wednesday dismantled a network of immigrant smugglers when they arrested two migrant traffickers and with 69 foreigners staying illegally in the country, officials said here on Thursday.

The two traffickers, an Iraqi citizen residing in Bulgaria since 1996 and a Somalian citizen residing in Bulgaria since 2014, were arrested here along with the 69 foreigners, the State Agency for National Security and the Ministry of Interior said in a statement.

Together with accomplices, the two organizers created a network for illegal migrants by providing illegal entry into Bulgaria, accommodation, and false identity documents to the migrants, the statement said.

Each migrant paid the traffickers between 1,000 to 3,000 euro (1,112 U.S. dollars to 3,335 dollars), the institutions said.

The network created conditions for endangering national security and public order, the statement said.

The two organizers were expelled from Bulgaria, it added.

Since 2013, Bulgaria has been facing an unprecedented wave of refugees. According to data from the State Agency for Refugees, 43,869 foreigners have sought asylum in Bulgaria since 1993, of whom 7,144 arrived in 2013 and 11,081 in 2014. In the first four months of 2015, the number was 4,377. Endit