Major raid against illegal employment gangs: Ten arrests after nationwide searches

Berlin/Hamburg. After nationwide searches of hotels and cleaning companies on suspicion of illegal work, human trafficking and welfare fraud, ten suspected gang members are in custody. According to the Berlin public prosecutor's office, the mastermind is a 50-year-old who was arrested on Wednesday at his residence in Hamburg. Since 2022, he is said to have worked initially from Berlin with 22 accomplices “for the purpose of maximizing profits” and in the process built up a complex network of companies with 30 to 40 companies.

According to authorities, more than one million euros in cash were seized during searches in the capital and Hamburg as well as Thuringia (Masserberg), Saxony (Dresden), Saxony-Anhalt (Halle/Saale), Hesse (Frankfurt/Main), North Rhine-Westphalia (Düsseldorf) and Baden-Württemberg (Karlsruhe). The investigators found the banknotes sorted into envelopes - ready to be paid out to the employees, as it was said.

In addition, gold worth more than 200,000 euros as well as numerous luxury goods - including high-quality cars and a motorcycle - with a total value of around 77,000 euros were seized. In addition to illegal weapons, the emergency services confiscated numerous cell phones and laptops as well as other evidence during a search of more than 100 apartments, accommodation, companies and hotels.

The starting point of the investigation was in Berlin, which is why the public prosecutor's office there is in charge. However, the investigations quickly took on “huge dimensions,” according to police and customs officials. “It was a bit like a tsunami,” said senior public prosecutor Christine Höfele. That is why the joint investigation group “Purgatio” (Latin: “cleaning”) was set up between the Berlin Federal Police Inspectorate for Combating Crime and the Berlin Main Customs Office.

After around a year and a half of undercover investigations against the alleged gang, the Germany-wide searches were carried out on Wednesday with around 2,200 personnel. Those involved spoke of a “very successful strike” in the fight against organized crime in the economic sector. It is now important to evaluate the extensive evidence seized as quickly as possible in order to bring the suspected perpetrators to justice.

According to the public prosecutor's office, these are German citizens, some of them with a migration background. The head of the gang is said to have deliberately smuggled people into Germany and used them to work in the cleaning industry throughout the country.

“People want to work here and come to Germany because of economic hardship,” explained Höfele. This is being exploited by criminals. Like slaves in the past, people are kept dependent for their own profit. “People are not only being stripped of all labor rights, but also of their dignity,” said the senior public prosecutor.

According to the investigation, many of the employees came from Eastern Europe, such as Ukraine and Georgia. Wages and working conditions for them are said to have been significantly lower than those of their German colleagues. According to the authorities' projections, the state suffered damage of around 25 million euros within four years in the context of social security alone.