27 Kosovars charged with migrant smuggling operation to Serbia, officials say

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• Kosovo’s prosecutors have charged 27 people with the crime of smuggling migrants to a neighboring country.
• The suspects are accused of collaborating to transport approximately 700 Syrians to neighboring Serbia.
• If the accused suspects are convicted, they could face a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Kosovo’s prosecutors on Wednesday charged 27 Kosovars with smuggling migrants to a neighboring country.

The prosecutors in a statement said the suspects collaborated to transport some 700 Syrians to neighboring Serbia on their way to Western Europe.

The charges indicate that the accused suspects were actively involved in organizing and executing the illicit movement of migrants.

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If convicted, they face up to 10 years in prison.

NATO soldiers are seen serving in Kosovo patrol next to a road barricade set up by ethnic Serbs near the town of Zubin Potok on Aug. 1, 2022. Kosovo’s prosecutors have charged 27 Kosovars with smuggling migrants to a neighboring country. (ARMEND NIMANI/AFP via Getty Images)

Kosovo officials previously reported that the number of people crossing illegally into The European Union in search of prosperity has soared in recent years.

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The case remains under investigation.