According to experts of the Police service of the European Union and the International criminal police organization, the trafficking of illegal migrants to Europe is a well established business which has allowed its organizers to earn from $5 billion to $6 billion in 2015
After the first year of acute phase of the migration crisis in Europe representatives
Europol and
Interpol released a joint report on the organization of illegal migration to Europe.
According to estimates police agencies, nine out of ten migrants who entered the European Union in 2015, in his journey to the Old world relied on the “mediation” of criminal groups operating on their routes.
The majority of migrants, as noted in the report, paid intermediaries from 3 thousand to 6 thousand euros ($3.4 to 6.8 thousand). The total earnings of the smugglers who organized the transport of migrants, according to Europol and Interpol, could be about $5-6 billion.
According to experts, the main organizers of criminal communities are immigrants from the same countries, and the migrants. But often they have a residence permit or EU passport.
“The basic structure of the transportation networks of migrants includes leaders that coordinate activities along a particular route, organizers, case managers on the ground through personal contacts, and enterprising collaborators on the lower stage, which basically helps the organizers and may participate in the recruitment.”
In the report published by a major “hot spots” on transit and transportation of migrants, and the recruitment of persons wishing to participate in the organization of illegal migration.
Along the main migration routes in total there have been approximately 250 points of transit and transportation (to various objects of transport infrastructure, in particular on railway, bus stations and/or airports).
Of these, 170 “hot spots” were identified within the EU and another 80 outside the region:
The report also identifies the main methods of payment for services of “intermediaries” on the part of migrants and refugees wishing to enter the EU. Most of the migrants paid for the services of “intermediaries” in cash (52%), a substantial part (20%) of payment for the services of smugglers was carried out in the framework of the informal financial-settlement systems (“hawala”). Another 16% of the total volume of payment traffic migration accounted for the families of migrants already in the EU who had paid for the move to the region for family members seeking to join them in Europe:
