The prosecutor's office in the northern Croatian city of Čakovec has launched an investigation, and a local court ordered the pretrial detention of a 21-year-old Romanian citizen for attempting to illegally transport Bangladeshi migrants to Slovenia and inhumane treatment of them, Hina reported.

The prosecutor's office reported that the arrested Romanian was also charged with illegal entry, movement and stay in Croatia.

According to the indictment, on July 24 he took a group of migrants from Bangladesh who did not have travel documents, visas or residence permits in Croatia and the Schengen area, with the intention of transporting them by truck to Slovenia for a promised payment.

He treated the migrants in an inhumane and degrading manner, hiding them in the cargo compartment of the vehicle without ventilation and enough space where they could barely breathe.

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The man was stopped by police at the Bukovie border crossing in the Međimurje region of northern Croatia.

The suspect was placed under arrest, as it is believed that there is a risk of escape, the agency noted, quoted by BTA.

Croatia

trafficking of migrants