The federal police took action against a group of alleged people smugglers in three federal states.
According to the Federal Police, the raid was directed against five suspects who allegedly smuggled at least 85 refugees into the country via the Balkan route under "sometimes life-threatening conditions" by truck or van.
Three suspects were arrested in Thuringia - two in Altenburg and one in Erfurt.
There were further searches in Ronnenberg in Lower Saxony and in Greifswald in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, as the federal police in Halle announced.
The accused are said to be organizers and drivers of at least six transports.
The investigators got on the trail of the gang through individual smugglers that had been discovered by the federal police close to the border on the motorways 4 and 17 in southeast Germany.
Because of the similarities, the officers assumed an organized gang and set up a special commission.
The investigations were carried out internationally and were also supported by the European police authority Europol.
The perpetrators are said to have collected between 1200 and 3500 euros per refugee for their smuggling services.
The seized evidence is currently being evaluated.
Among them was a vehicle used for human smuggling.
About 120 officers were on duty.
According to the federal police, the three arrested persons should now be brought before a judge who should decide on the order of remand detention.
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