Bulgaria's IntMin 'Has No Info' on Int'l People Smuggling Ring Busted by Turkey

Bulgaria's outgoing Interior Minister Rumyana Bachvarova, File photo, BGNES

Outgoing Bulgarian Interior Minister Rumyana Bachvarova said on Sunday she had "no information" when asked to comment on news that Turkish police had gracked down on a massive people smuggling ring.

Earlier, Hürriyet Daily News reported a gang involving a number of Balkan countries, including Bulgaria, had been exposed after having helped both Turkish and foreign nationals get to Western Europe.

It sad security forces from as many as 13 countries had been contacted by Turkish police for help.

Bachvarova, however, suggested she was not aware of the operation.

"It must be along the lines of Europol," she told journalists.

The network also dealt with smuggling Gülenists and members of outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

One of the paths used by a large international smuggling ring involved Bulgaria, to which migrants from Afghanistan, Syria and Pakistan were transferred through the Bulgarian-Turkish border.

"After passing a trail with a guide, the migrants were handed to representatives of the gang in Bulgararia," Hürriyet reports. Anoother technique used included Schengen visas for migrants provided in Turkey which were used to lead them into Romania and Bulgaria and from there on to other countries.

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