At least nine people were killed in two separate car crashes involving migrant smuggling in central Europe over the past two days.
An overcrowded minibus carrying 23 people crashed after reportedly evading police patrols in the southern German region of Bavaria early Friday morning (October 13).
At least seven people were killed, and all 16 other people in the vehicle were injured – some of them severely. The passengers were Syrians and Turks and included children, according to police. The driver was reportedly a stateless man.
A car crash happened in southern Hungary near the Serbian border one day earlier. At least two people died, and six were injured. The car had also evaded police controls, and then hit a tree and turned over, according to local police.
The number of reported car crashes in Europe involving migrants appears to be on the rise. This is likely happening for two reasons.
Firstly, The number of migrants attempting to reach Western Europe has risen in recent months.
Secondly, Several EU countries have increased police controls, leading to more instances in which smugglers try to speed away from police controls.
Several road accidents occurred in past months due to overspeeding to escape border police and carrying more and more migrants in a single run.
To stop these incidents, Germany has recently increased patrols at its borders, particularly on its border with Poland. This includes increased police presence in and near the town of Forst in Brandenburg state, roughly a two-hour drive southeast of Berlin.
Several groups were stopped by police there on Wednesday (October 11). Police temporarily confiscated some migrants’ belongings, including a Syrian passport.
Tickets found by officers indicated that some of the migrants likely travelled through Slovakia. The patrol officers found a ticket for a connection that arrived in the Slovakian capital of Bratislava early on Wednesday morning.