A total of 11 people were arrested in the early hours of Thursday, June 5, along the old Larnaca - Famagusta road, in a joint operation against the trafficking of irregular migrants between the areas of the British Bases and the Republic.
A statement from the Bases states that "six brokers and five prohibited migrants are under police surveillance after being arrested while attempting to pass through the controlled areas. The men, Syrian nationals, were arrested as part of Operation Nexus, which targets crimes related to illegal crossing and immigration."
The Head of the Customs and Immigration Department of the British Bases, Mark Hartley, stated that “the success of this operation was a result of close coordination between the Bases and their counterparts from the Immigration Department of the Republic of Cyprus in Famagusta and the Green Line Patrol Unit.”
He added that "both we and the Base Police work very closely with the Republic of Cyprus and we have an excellent working relationship" while thanking the Inspector of the Famagusta Immigration Department "for his unwavering support".
He also stated that "thanks to our shared information during this operation, we achieved a very positive result."
For his part, the Assistant Police Director in Dhekelia, Police Constable Konstantinos Petrou, said that "we take this crime very seriously and it is important that we continue to share information with the Cyprus Police to ensure that we are able to tackle this illegal activity."
He also stated that "it is also very important that joint operations by the British Base Police, Customs and the Cyprus Police continue, in an effort to limit the opportunities for criminals who exploit jurisdictional challenges."
The eleven arrested, according to the Bases' announcement, "will remain in police custody pending further investigations."
Source: KYPE
