Hidden camera footage showed people with deportation records and improper papers were let through after paying bribes
TIRANA, April 15 – Officers from the internal affairs department have arrested several border police officers at three crossing points, after hidden-camera footage by journalists showed they would take bribes to let people with paperwork problems cross the border, officials said.
Seven officers have been accused of abuse of office and corruption, and have been expelled from police ranks.
The arrests came after the video footage appeared in a local investigative media program that showed how 50-euro bribes could get people with deportation on their records through border crossings to Greece, Montenegro and Macedonia. In Macedonia’s case, the footage also showed similar corruption on the other side of the border.
Police have stepped up checks at border crossings to stop hundreds of people who are looking to migrate to wealthier countries, often by filing bogus asylum claims.
According to local media, hundreds of residents from rural areas in several northern and southern counties have traveled to Western Europe, primarily to Germany, with the intent to work there, eventhough they can’t legally do so.
Albanian official sources also announced that over 3,000 Albanian citizens have sought asylum recently in Germany.
The Interior Ministry announced that 750 people had been deported back in just a few days.
They would be served with long travel bans.
The Interior Ministry said it is investigating several travel companies over allegations that they mislead people by promising asylum in European Union countries.
