Seven die after migrant vehicle crashes in Germany

Seven people, includ­ing a child, have died after a crowded minivan driven by a suspect­ed people-smuggler overturned in southern Germany, police say.

Twenty-three people were in the van, which is designed to fit nine.

The driver attempted to evade police at a road check before losing control near Ampfing in Bavaria, authorities say.

The accident happened amid a rise in people-smuggling which has led several Central and Eastern European countries to impose border checks.

Police say they tried to intercept the Mercedes Vito van at around 03:00 (01:00 GMT) on Friday.

The driver of the vehicle, which had an Austrian licence plate, accelerated to 180km/h (112mph) before rolling over several times at a junction on the A94 motor­way, between the Austrian border and Munich. The driver has been arrested.

Police said the vehicle’s over­crowding contributed to the high death toll. A six-year-old child was among the dead.

There have been a number of crashes involving people-smug­glers in European countries in recent weeks.

A car with French licence plates thought to be smuggling mi­grants overturned in Hungary on Thursday, leaving two dead and six injured.

Last week, a vehicle crashed in the town of Burghausen, on the German-Austrian border, about 50km from the site of Friday’s accident, injuring four people.

Several EU countries, including Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic, have reimposed bor­der checks in recent weeks as a result of an increase in smuggling incidents.

Polish authorities say the height­ened checks have succeeded in reducing the number of migrant crossings.

The A94 motorway in south-eastern Germany is con­sidered a regular route for peo­ple-smugglers crossing the border from Austria.

Bavarian Interior Minister, Joachim Herrmann, said the tragic crash highlighted the need to strengthen border controls to stop smugglers from entering Germany.

First-time asylum requests in Germany rose by 78% in the first seven months of 2023. Police say the passage of about a quarter of migrants into Germany is facilitat­ed by smugglers. —BBC

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