Defendant contests the allegations in the illicit trafficking case.

In a significant case unfolding at the Traunstein Regional Court, four individuals are facing trial for their alleged involvement in an international human smuggling ring. The defendants, three of whom are Syrian nationals and one German, are accused of smuggling nearly 800 people, predominantly of Syrian origin, into Europe.

The main defendant, a 36-year-old, is said to have been one of the leaders of the network in Germany, responsible for the majority of smuggling along the Balkan route from Syria to Germany. The journeys were organised as so-called "guaranteed smuggling," with passengers depositing money with a Hawala trustee who only released the payment upon arrival.

The alleged accomplice acted as a trustee for a payment office within the so-called Hawala system, while the main defendant is accused of downplaying his role in the operation, during which two women lost their lives due to physical exhaustion during the foot journey from Belarus to Latvia.

The gang is said to have collected several million euros between 2022 and 2024, smuggling people predominantly from Serbia via Hungary and Austria into Germany and sometimes into neighbouring EU countries. One of the defendants denied the charges, while the other three, including the main defendant, remained silent at the start of the proceedings.

Judge Volker Ziegler advised all defendants to make comprehensive statements, and the main defendant admitted to illegal transactions but claimed not to know what the money was for. The other alleged accomplice is accused of having paid the smuggler's fee in Germany.

The defendants were arrested in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia in November as part of a Europe-wide special operation. The main defendant is also accused of giving various orders for crimes, including the attempted murder of his ex-wife's father in Syria and attacks on his ex-wife and her new husband.

The trial, scheduled for 23 trial days until mid-December, also involves the main defendant being accused of organising a smuggling operation that led to the deaths of two women. The international network smuggled people into Europe, making this a case of significant importance in the ongoing fight against human trafficking.