At the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, people smugglers, too, came to a halt; however, as soon as the authorities lifted the restrictions imposed, criminal gangs became active again, the Chief Security Advisor to the Prime Minister said on the public service television news channel M1 on Friday evening.

György Bakondi said so far this year 16,000 illegal migrants have attempted to enter Hungary and 177 people smugglers have been apprehended, while last year during the whole year this number was only 155.

Organised crime is penetrating migration ever more, and the centres of people smuggling networks are mostly located in the largest issuer countries such as Afghanistan and Turkey, he added.

(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)