Wilrijk The federal police of Antwerp has Saturday a large-scale controleactie held on international low-cost companies. The objective of the action was prohibited goods and drugs to detect and to combat trafficking in human beings and terrorism. During the audit, three illegal immigrants and three wanted people encountered and were 41 passengers caught in possession of drugs or traces of drugs. Minister Pieter De Crem also came to take a look.
The choice to the lowcostbedrijven to check, is not an accidental choice. After all, it is already clear that the criminals in the cheaper bus transport is the ideal way to under the radar to stay. This includes to drug trafficking, wapentrafiek, human trafficking and the smuggling of cigarettes.
In the past, it has been revealed that Mehdi Nemmouche, the perpetrator of the attack on the Jewish Museum in Brussels, of these buses made use to quickly move to a different country to flee. The information arising from such actions arising, is therefore extremely valuable for all security and intelligence services.
The coaches of foreign companies by the federal police intercepted on the Ring of Antwerp and diverted to a car park where the passengers and the driver, the company received from some agents. The buses then had a mandatory stopover in the buildings of the federal police of Antwerp in Wilrijk, where they were fully checked, including luggage and passengers.
One of the first buses of a Dutch bus company was found not to be in order. Result: the passengers were allowed to look for another vehicle to end up in Antwerp to get. Two other buses were threatening the same fate to undergo, but could at a later stage, a permit to present. Then they could have their journey continue. A Spanish bus with large trailer was not immediately a lot of violations, but the agents were quite surprised by the huge number of travel bags, but funny enough also an electric fireplace, a refrigerator, and a dismantled car.
In a total of ten buses were intercepted. The police checked 171 passengers and hit three illegal immigrants and three wanted people. Two of them were held. With 41 passengers were also on drugs or traces of drugs found. It came to amphetamines, MDMA and heroin.