2 Latvians Detained at Polish-German Border for Facilitating Illegal Border Crossing of 13 People
These two individuals, along with the 13 migrants, were caught by the authorities of Poland as they tried to cross the Polish-German border, AtoZSerwisPlus.de reports.
Gazeta Wyborcza explains that both of the Latvian nationals were over the age of 35. In addition, it noted that they were detained by officers of the National Revenue Administration during a routine inspection.
According to the officers, the 13 individuals were being transported by a cargo bus. The driver of the bus said to the Polish authorities that he took these foreigners from a parking lot in Lithuania and at the same time pointed out that he had to take them to Germany at the request of a person he did not know.
Additionally, the Polish authorities have said that of the total number of people that were on the cargo bus to be transported to Germany, nine of them claimed to be nationals of Afghanistan, another two said that they were nationals of Tajikistan, and another two said that they were Russians.
The nationals of Latvia who were transporting these individuals may be imprisoned for up to three years, whereas nationals of Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Russia will be asked to leave the territory of Poland as soon as the authorities carry out all the necessary procedures.
It is believed that the nationals of Russia tried to reach Germany illegally now that the majority of EU countries have introduced restrictions against them. Nonetheless, the Polish authorities have not given any official statement on the matter yet.
Previously, AtoZSerwisPlus.de reported that a total of 258 citizens of Russia entered Latvia via its land border within a 24-hour period between October 2 and October 3.
The State Border Guard of Latvia said that these figures are five times less compared to the number of citizens of Russia who entered the neighbouring countries of Latvia, such as Lithuania (1,336) and Estonia (1,245).
In addition to the above-mentioned, the Latvian State Border Guard said that since September 19, when an entry ban was introduced for Russians, the number of citizens of Russia that entered Latvia decreased by 22 per cent.
The same authority said that currently, only those who meet specific conditions would be permitted to enter Latvia. The same explained that only 15 per cent of the total number of Russians who were permitted to enter the country had a national visa and another 40 per cent of them held a Latvian residence permit.
