Bulgarian Border Officers Capture Migrant Trafficker in Shocking Chase and Bribery Drama

In a thrilling turn of events, border police successfully arrested a driver transporting two illegal migrants following a lengthy chase near Elhovo, a pursuit that ended with a brazen bribery attempt by the detainee.

The incident unfolded on the 30th of October, 2023, on road I-7/GCP "Lesovo" in the vicinity of the town of Elhovo, catching the attention of a vigilant border police team. The team immediately reported their discovery to the GPU-Elhovo duty unit and set off in pursuit of the illegal migrants.

As the border police officers ventured onto a dirt road, they encountered a speeding car heading directly towards their official vehicle. Inspector Dimitar Dimitrov, a scout in the OID sector of the Elhovo RDGP, skillfully swerved aside to avoid a head-on collision, although the migrants' car struck the company vehicle from the front left door to the rear left fender.

Undeterred by the collision, the border police continued their pursuit, chasing the car occupied by the migrants, which was racing toward the town of Elhovo. Despite the border police's flashing lights and sirens, the driver of the fleeing vehicle persistently ignored the signals, repeatedly losing control of the car and veering erratically across lanes, endangering other vehicles.

In an effort to minimize traffic hazards, the border police reduced their speed and maintained a safe distance behind the offenders. In a daring move, the car carrying the migrants attempted a hazardous overtaking maneuver just beyond the "Old Bridge" hut on a sharp left turn, imperiling an oncoming truck that narrowly avoided a collision.

Approximately 100 meters past the "Stariya Most" hut junction, the driver of the migrants' car lost control, swerved off the road, and came to a halt.

The driver and migrants hastily exited the vehicle, fleeing on foot. Inspector Dimitrov promptly pursued the driver, repeatedly ordering him to stop, but to no avail. He escalated his warning by stating, "Stop, I will shoot," yet the fleeing driver continued to defy the police's commands.

Faced with the relentless escapee, Inspector Dimitrov discharged a warning shot in a safe direction. This action momentarily halted the fleeing driver, but he quickly resumed his flight. Fortunately, he was ultimately apprehended and detained by Inspector Dimitrov.

Subsequent inquiries revealed that the driver was a 24-year-old Syrian with refugee status in Bulgaria. The passengers in his vehicle, two men aged 34 and 28 from Egypt, lacked identity documents and were also apprehended.

Following a prosecutor's decree for a detention period of up to 72 hours, the refugee driver was escorted to investigative detention. The case prompted the initiation of a pre-trial proceeding under Art. 281 of the Criminal Code.

In a separate incident on the same morning at 6:45 a.m., border police officers patrolling the I-7 main road near Topolovgrad observed a truck traveling in the direction of Elhovo. They immediately initiated pursuit and signaled the driver to stop; however, the driver defied their orders.

A second border police unit from GPU-Elhovo and a police car patrol soon joined the pursuit. The driver's escape led them into the village of Kukorevo, Yambol municipality, where he was ultimately halted. The 55-year-old driver from Sofia attempted to flee on foot but was successfully apprehended with the assistance of the service dog Wolf.

In the cargo hold of the truck, authorities discovered 12 illegal migrants without any identity documents, all reportedly from Syria.

Investigations into this case are ongoing as the authorities work diligently to address the incident and its implications for border security.

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