Croatia's penitentiary system strained amid migrant crisis: A surge in smuggler arrests

Migrants who manage to reach the territory of the Republic of Croatia generally stay only for a short time. They cross the eastern native border before heading west. Official data indicates that as many as 70,000 registered entrants were present last year.

According to Croatian service Jutarnji. hr, applying for asylum at the nearest border police station is essentially a formality enabling migrants to legalize their status and continue their journey with much less apprehension. In this way, the country serves as a mere "transit hub" along their route.

Nonetheless, this does not indicate that mass migrations have no impact on the functionality of various services. Data from the Ministry of Justice reveals an average of about 180 registered migrants pass through Croatia daily, and approximately five smugglers transporting these individuals for profit are captured.

Last Friday, a police chase of a suspect van carrying 32 foreigners ended in a road accident on Kustošijanska Street in Zagreb. Nearly twenty police officers tracked down a Moldovan who had exited the A-1 highway and crashed through a protective fence in Lučki.

The man who committed three crimes concurrently - smuggling people, fleeing from the police, and causing an accident - will be arrested and subsequently incarcerated. The detained migrants also require care - provisions must be made for their accommodation, food, and medical check-ups. Additionally, translators and officials must prepare all required documents and initiate processes concerning their illegal border crossing.

According to the report, one in every seven people currently held in Croatian prisons or detention centers is a smuggler.

"The Directorate for the Prison System and Probation has identified the necessity to provide support to prison system officials when communicating with prisoners who do not speak Croatian and hail from over 50 different countries. Utilizing ICT technology as an auxiliary communication tool with people from various linguistic backgrounds is the only logical step," state Croatian authorities.