Serbian NGOs referred to BIRN’s recent investigation in this field when demanding an investigation into suspected police ties to people smugglers.
Serbian police on Sunday said they discovered an illegal migrant camp near the borders with Hungary and Romania, and detained suspected people smugglers. Photo: Serbian Interior Ministry
The Belgrade Centre for Security Policy, BCBP, and Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights, YUCOM, on Friday urged the Prosecution for Organized Crime, TOK, when prosecuting people smuggling gangs, to examine information published by BIRN about the links between Ministry of Interior officials and smugglers.
“The information provided by BIRN in an investigation article published on June 22, but also the scale of the escalation of violence among migrants and smugglers, just two days after the publication of the mentioned article, indicate that the Ministry of Interior bears a large part of the responsibility for endangering the safety of citizens,” their press release said.
They stressed that during the mandate of Interior Minister Aleksandar Vulin, crime had escalated in this area, and his frequent statements of hate speech, which is the subject of the proceedings initiated by JUKOM, cause intolerance and hatred towards all those who are different in Serbia, including national minorities and migrants.
“In the last two government mandates, Aleksandar Vulin was in the security structures, and as the Minister of Defence and as the Minister of Interior, his statements violated the integrity of the security sector and threatened the official policy of the government … regarding EU integration,” the NGOs stress.
On June 22, BIRN published an investigation into a smuggling gang which dominates Sombor and northwest Serbia’s border with the EU and takes down rivals with the help of police on its payroll.
The group is allegedly led by Alen Basil, a Serbian citizen of Syrian origin, who is also an Arabic translator for the police, and his first associate, named Abu Omar, known for leading the group in the field.
Just a day after BIRN’s investigation was published, a person was reported wounded in a conflict between smuggling gangs as shots were fired near a migrant camp in northwest Serbia known as a smuggling hub.
Days later, on July 2, in Subotica, on the border with Hungary, a larger armed conflict between two smuggling gangs erupted in which Kalashnikovs were fired. The authorities announced that one person died, while eight were wounded, including a 16-year-old girl.
However, only one person was arrested, a 26-year-old Afghan, while the police did not answer any BIRN questions related to that incident or the culprits.
BIRN’s series of investigations have shown that people smugglers are closely linked to the Serbian police or security agencies.
The article, “With Police Connections, Serbian-Syrian Translator Turned People-Smuggler”, provides evidence of violence meted out by Alen Basil’s group and of his collaboration with police officers, especially a man identified as “Major Deki”. The group racketeers smaller smuggling groups and uses violence against competitors as well as migrants and refugees not using their “services”.
Several sources stated that Basil has bragged about his links with Interior Minister Vulin.
BIRN sent inquiries to the Interior Ministry about the matter, including questions directly for Vulin on his alleged ties with Basil, but did not receive a reply by the time of publication.
Police announced on Thursday, that they formed a special operational unit on July 4, contained of numerous police services, but also of the Security Intelligence Agency, BIA.
Police also said they took measures against 85 illegal migrants, six of whom were arrested, and criminal charges were filed against two on suspicion of having committed various criminal acts, the statement added. Forty irregular migrants were detained under the Law on Foreigners, while another 40 were charged with misdemeanours.
The police said they confiscated three automatic rifles, a rifle, four pistols, 12 pieces of different knives, machetes and boxers, as well as 182 pieces of ammunition of different calibres.
BIRN sent additional questions to the police, but also to the Prosecution for Organized Crime, on the matter, but received no reply by the time of publication.
Source link: balkaninsight.com
