smuggling

United Kingdom

UK jails smuggler for 25 years over arranging migrant boats to Europe

UK-based Egyptian national Ahmed Ebid helped smuggle nearly 3,800 people from north Africa to Italy as part of a lucrative criminal network.

20/05/2025

Spain

Spanish police arrest Russian couple over Mallorca cat smuggling ring

The suspects are alleged to have advertised species including pumas, white tigers and clouded leopards — for which they were charging €60,000.

15/04/2025

Health news

Customs officials issue warning about 'erectile honey' flooding France

French authorities made a record bust in 2024, seizing 13 tonnes of honey laced with erectile dysfunction medicine.

21/01/2025

Europe News

Man suspected of supplying small boats to people smugglers arrested

A joint operation between authorities in Belgium, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom led to the arrest of a Turkish national in Amsterdam.

15/11/2024

Europe News

French court convicts 18 people in migrant smuggling trial

The defendants were part of a smuggling gang accused of overseeing most Channel crossings on small boats from France to the UK from 2000 to 2022.

05/11/2024

Green News

Italian men fined for stealing butterflies from Sri Lanka

The two men from northern Italy face two years in jail if they fail to pay the fine by 24 September.

16/09/2024

Bulgaria

Eight arrested in Bulgaria migrant smuggling ring bust

Smugglers were charging up to €6,000 per head to smuggle migrants to Bulgaria, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

21/08/2024

Nature

Italian men sued for suspected rare cacti smuggling from Chile

An Italian conservation organisation is suing two people at the centre of a cacti smuggling lawsuit for damaging its work to support biodiversity.

29/06/2024

Green News

‘Super-pollutant’ greenhouse gases are being smuggled into Europe

The impact of hydrofluorocarbons on global warming can be up to thousands of times greater than that of carbon dioxide.

08/04/2024

Travel News

Airport sniffer dog discovers mummified monkeys in passenger's luggage

Bushmeat is illegal in the US due to the risk of viruses.

12/02/2024

World News

EU launches European Ports Alliance tackle drug trafficking

Last year saw a huge increase in drug seizures in several European ports, with gangs exploiting security weaknesses.

24/01/2024

Spain

Spanish police seize illegally exported Ukrainian jewellery

In a police statement on Monday, Spanish authorities released a statement announcing the recovery of 11 pieces of jewelry that had been smuggled from Ukraine, some dating back to the 8th century BC

23/10/2023

World News

Euroviews. These are the unspoken truths about human smuggling

To truly disrupt the underpinnings of smuggling networks, mere security enhancements won't cut it. We might find more success in reducing the demand for smuggling services rather than suppressing its supply, Dr Luigi Achilli writes.

09/10/2023

Travel News

Watch: Inside the chaotic flight where escaped rat bites air steward

A security worker at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport has been suspended, as police investigate the smuggling incident.

06/10/2023

Green News

Mystery as ‘malnourished’ lion cub found wandering a road in Serbia

The smuggling of wild and rare animals is believed to be widespread in the Balkan region.

22/09/2023

World News

Eel smuggling ring busted by European police

More than 25 tonnes of trafficked eels worth €13 million were seized by Europol.

29/06/2023

Romania

Euroviews. Europe has a tobacco smuggling problem it needs to curb

Putting an end to tobacco smuggling would mean extra money in the budget to help those who need it the most — an ideal the European Union leaders vowed to uphold, Cristian Gherasim writes.

27/06/2023

Europe Decoded

'Gateway' Spain sees spike in protected animals trafficking

Last year, there was a 55% increase in the number of protected animals trafficked to Spain compared with 2021.

31/03/2023

Greece

Fisherman facing 4,760 years in jail receives centuries-long sentence

The 45-year-old man had agreed to steer the migrant boat he was travelling on with his teenage son, in return for a cheaper fee paid to the smugglers.

07/03/2023

Spain

Spanish police dismantle gang smuggling drugs disguised as Ukraine aid

The group had allegedly "pretended to be part of a solidarity convoy" in order to avoid police and border controls.

06/12/2022