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Estonian citizen arrested for illegally transporting migrants
🇱🇹 Lithuania /Energy & Infrastructure

Estonian citizen arrested for illegally transporting migrants

From Delfi · () Lithuanian

Translated from Lithuanian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News From a news agency Under investigation
  • Lithuanian border guards stopped a car with Estonian license plates near the Latvian border and found three young African migrants inside.
  • The driver, a 55-year-old Estonian citizen, was detained, and the migrants, claiming to be from Eritrea, were housed at a border guard post.
  • An investigation into illegal human trafficking has been launched, and the Estonian citizen faces up to eight years in prison; a court has ordered his pre-trial detention for two months.

Lithuanian border guards apprehended an Estonian citizen suspected of illegally transporting migrants near the country's border with Latvia. The incident occurred on Friday when officers stopped a "Nissan NV200" vehicle with Estonian license plates for inspection.

Inside the microbus, driven by the 55-year-old Estonian, were three young individuals who identified themselves as citizens of Eritrea, a small East African nation. They lacked any personal identification documents. The border guards detained the driver and provided temporary accommodation for the migrants at a Vilnius border guard post.

A pre-trial investigation has been initiated for illegal human trafficking for mercenary purposes. The driver faces potential penalties including a fine or imprisonment for up to eight years. A court has since ordered his pre-trial detention for two months. Typically, after necessary procedures, Lithuanian border guards return apprehended irregular migrants to their Latvian counterparts.

DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Delfi in Lithuanian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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