INDICTMENT ISSUED AGAINST TWO PERSONS FOR SMUGGLING ILLEGAL MIGRANTS FROM MOROCCO AND ALGERIA

The accused Mirza Puriš (1996) and Elvir Sejdić (1988) are charged that they, in order to acquire unlawful material gain, smuggled illegal migrants who did not meet the conditions for legal entry and stay in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

A prosecutor of the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH has filed an indictment against:

1. Mirza Puriš, born in 1996 in Sarajevo, a citizen of BiH

2. Elvir Sejdić, born in 1988 in Odžak, a citizen of BiH

The accused are charged that in mid-2020 they came into contact with illegal migrants residing in BiH and that in order to acquire unlawful material gain, they agreed to smuggle and transport three Moroccan citizens and one Algerian citizen through the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, from the direction of Sarajevo to Bihać, in exchange for monetary compensation from the smuggled persons.

These actions are contrary to the Protocol against Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, which supplements the United Nations Convention against Transnational and Organised Crime.

During the commission of the criminal offence, the accused were discovered and prevented by the police officers of the State Investigation and Protection Agency-SIPA.

The accused are charged with the criminal offence of Smuggling of Persons under Article 189 of the Criminal Code of BiH.

The indictment was forwarded to the Court of BiH for confirmation.