”Last year, members of the Border Police of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) deterred more than 5.500 people from trying to cross the border illegally, while they arrested 20 people for human smuggling, ” stated the director of this police agency, Zoran Galic, to the agency Srna.
He pointed out that in 2021, the Border Police of BiH recorded 22 criminal acts of human trafficking and submitted 21 reports to the competent prosecutor’s office.
Galic told that the police officers of the Border Police of BiH last year carried out a series of operational actions, including an action code-named “Galeb”, which referred to breaking the chain of organized human trafficking.
Members of the Border Police of BiH, the Police of the Brcko District, and the Ministry of the Internal Affairs of Croatia took part in that operational action. It was conducted in cooperation with the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH, and 10 people were arrested on that occasion.
Galic explained that the Border Police of BiH temporarily seized about 50 kilograms of marijuana from criminal acts last year, while the biggest operative action aimed at breaking up organized criminal groups in connection with the illegal trafficking of narcotics was an operation codenamed “Escobar”.
Furthermore, he said that in that action, about 6.000 hemp stalks were discovered in a purpose-built camp for the production and cultivation of marijuana, which was distributed both in the domestic and European Union (EU) markets.
Galic added that 330 marijuana stalks, a large amount of speed, automatic rifles, pistols, various ammunition, and other things were discovered in the “Marijuana” operation.
“Recently, we conducted an operational action ‘Koridor‘, during which we found and temporarily seized textile goods andcigarettes worth more than 350.000 BAM,” said the director of the Border Police of BiH.
“The Border Police of BiH worked in conditions of absolute undercapacity in terms of lack of human and material-technicalresources, conditions of intensive migratory pressure on the border of BiH on the so-called Balkan route, increased cross-border crime, especially in the area of human smuggling, especially migrants, as well as in the conditions of increased requests for additional engagement of police officers and equipment for performing border checks and controls at the newly opened border crossings, ” Galic emphasized.
Apart from that, the Border Police of BiH planned to improve the functionality and security of capacities in the field of information management and improve the work on recording activities at the border of BiH, which will contribute to overall security in BiH and the surrounding area.
E.Dz.
Source: BHRT
