Police chase with migrant traffickers went on for more than 70 km on Trakia Motorway

A new police chase with a minibus carrying illegal migrants took place today, November 25, at noon near the village of Rakitnitsa on the road between Chirpan and Stara Zagora.

Twenty three illegal migrants were detained after the chase by police vehicles.

A minibus with Polish registration was spotted by police officers near the 205th km of the Trakia motorway. It did not stop at a stop sign and after a chase, which went on for more than 70 km on the motorway and subsequently in populated areas, a traffic accident occurred. No one was injured. The two Ukrainian traffickers attempted to flee but were arrested after a lengthy chase.

"This really happens every day and I don't know how much of this is a war on the part of the state, but if it is fought it is defensive. Every day the traffic situation is exposed risk, i.e. there is a potential danger for new victims. It turns out that there should be signs on the roads saying: “Caution! Migrants pass freely," said Rumen Popov, Plovdiv's deputy appellate prosecutor.

According to initial reports, there was another van, which was later found empty. Prosecutor Popov also said that we should hardly be constantly on the lookout on the streets not only for reckless drivers, but for migrant traffickers as well.

"The pre-trial proceedings were initiated because on November 25, 2022, in the village of Rakitnitsa, Stara Zagora municipality, for the purpose of material gain, 23 foreign nationals were illegally assisted - citizens of Syria and Iraq, all men, to illegally cross the country. A vehicle with Polish registration was used for this purpose," explained Tanya Dimitrova, Stara Zagora district prosecutor.

The vehicle was driven at a speed of around 140 km/h and in populated areas, creating a real danger for other road users. He drove through the village of. Plodovitovo, through Chirpan and headed towards the village of. Rakitnitsa, where he stopped. The two traffickers started to flee from the police officers, but after a chase which went on for about 2 km they were detained. The supervising prosecutor will ask for their measure to be "detention in custody" for 72 hours.

The minibus was spotted near Chirpan, with the driver failing to stop at a raised stop sign. A chase ensued in which the driver of the minibus lost control of the vehicle, it spun on the road and came to a stop.

The trafficker, a man of Ukrainian origin, was slightly injured. No police officers were injured in the chase. It was found that there were 23 illegal migrants in the minibus