- Illegal Pakistani immigrants were held in a warehouse while traffickers asked for money
- Each had paid around $2,200 to be taken by boat to Thessaloniki
THESSALONIKI, Greece: Police in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki say they have arrested the driver of a van carrying 26 migrants — 23 of them from Pakistan and three from Bangladesh.
Police say the driver was an Albanian who tried to escape on foot after officers stopped the van early Sunday but was caught.
Authorities say police then arrested a Greek man in charge of a warehouse where officers found 12 more Pakistanis being held while the traffickers asked for money.
Police say the 26 migrants in the van were being driven to the warehouse. Officials say the 26 paid 2,000 euros ($2,200) each to be taken by boat across the river dividing Turkey and Greece and then by road to Thessaloniki.