Athens car chase leads to arrest of 12 immigrants, trafficker

A car chase in central Athens on Tuesday morning led to the arrest of 12 migrants and their trafficker, Greek police said.

The suspect’s vehicle, was deemed suspicious due to the excessive number of passengers and was chased by police, after the driver did not respond to police signals.

In total, eight women and four men from Nepal, as well as the 17-year-old Pakistani driver, were arrested.

The driver was picked out as a member of a human trafficking network and the police have further identified his partner, who is being sought.

The migrants entered the country in two different groups, the first of which was initially in Serbia and then North Macedonia, with each paying €1,700 to the traffickers, according to police officials.

The second group followed the same route as the men, but were taken to Serbia via Cyprus, their trafficking fee being €3,500 each.

They had been asked whether they would then want to be moved to France, in which case they would each have to pay an additional €3,500.