Federal police stop overcrowded vehicle in Mittenwald: mother sells jewelry for smuggling

Created: 09/08/2022, 16:02

The federal police stopped an overcrowded car in Mittenwald.

At the wheel was a man who is already a suspect in another smuggling case.

© Federal Police

Mittenwald – The federal police arrested a suspected smuggler in Mittenwald on Wednesday (September 7th).

He is accused of illegally driving five migrants across the German-Austrian border in his car under adverse conditions.

Since there were more people in the car than seats, two minors had to share a seat on the back seat.

As it quickly turned out, the driver, who was known to the police, had only been arrested at the end of April on suspicion of smuggling.

The Turkish man was taken into custody on Thursday.

Garmisch-Partenkirchner federal police officers stopped the car with a total of six occupants in the Mittenwald city area as part of border controls.

A Turkish national was behind the wheel of the five-person vehicle with German license plates.

He was able to identify himself with a German settlement permit.

The other five inmates had no papers with them.

According to their own statements, they were Kurdish Turks.

A 22-year-old man and three minors aged 10, 12 and 13 were in the rear seat, which was designed for three people.

The four were not belted due to the limited space.

Child seats were not available.

The passenger is the mother of the children.

The 39-year-old said she only knew the young man and the driver from this trip.

Her flight with her children first took her from Turkey to Bosnia.

She had to pay a total of around 10,000 euros for the organized smuggling from the Balkans to Germany.

For this she would have had no choice but to sell her jewelry and borrow money.

The suspected smuggler arrested and his five passengers were taken to the responsible federal police station in Rosenheim.

There the driver explained that he had met his companions quite by accident at a gas station in Austria.

When the officials questioned this, he did not want to give any more information.

With the personal details of the man reported in North Rhine-Westphalia, the investigators found out that the Turk had been arrested by the federal police in the Passau district in April of this year.

The allegation in the previous proceedings: smuggling three compatriots.

Due to the renewed suspicion of smuggling, the 36-year-old was brought before the investigating judge in Munich on Thursday.

By order of the judge, he had to go into custody.

After the completion of the police measures, the Federal Police directed the woman and her children to a reception center for refugees.

The 22-year-old, on the other hand, was refused entry.

He had no interest in protection or asylum in Germany and was therefore rejected and handed over to the Austrian police.