Frankfurt/Main (dpa/lhe) - In the fight against smuggling, investigators searched 25 properties in the Rüsselsheim, Wiesbaden and Mainz-Bingen area and arrested five men. In the joint action of the Federal Police at Frankfurt Airport and the Federal Customs Administration, numerous pieces of evidence were also secured on Wednesday, including business documents, pay slips and mobile phones, as the authorities announced.
According to the information, several men between the ages of 47 and 55 have been under investigation on behalf of the public prosecutor's office in Darmstadt since this spring on suspicion of smuggling foreigners in gangs and on a commercial basis. They are also suspected of withholding wages and evading taxes. In addition, more than 30 people who were found during the searches are being investigated on suspicion of illegal residence.
"Again and again, foreign nationals are recruited for illegal employment in Germany. The smugglers take advantage of the workers' financial plight," said the joint statement from the federal police, the Darmstadt public prosecutor's office and the main customs office in Darmstadt. The workers often have to work off the smugglers' wages and are paid well below the legal minimum wage.
