Croatia arrests 25 suspected human traffickers

(ZAGREB) - Croatia has arrested 25 people suspected of being part of human trafficking networks smuggling mostly Kosovo and Turkish nationals to the European Union, police said Wednesday.

"Police have evidence that a total of 133 immigrants were smuggled" earlier this year, official Dean Savic told journalists.

He said the arrests took place on Tuesday in raids in the capital Zagreb, coastal town Split and the northern town of Osijek.

They are suspected of having organised the transfer of immigrants entering Croatia from Bosnia and Serbia, towards neighbouring EU member state Slovenia.

Immigrants paid between 1,000 and 1,200 ($1,500) each for the trip, Savic said.

Croatia, set to become an EU member on July 1, is part of the so-called Balkans route often used by criminals to smuggle people, arms and drugs to Western Europe.