BRATISLAVA, June 6 (Xinhua) -- Three Slovaks face charges of smuggling of 34 foreigners of Vietnamese origin, local media reported on Wednesday.
A first batch of 20 migrants, who illegally crossed the state border from Ukraine, were caught by the police close to the village of Podhorod in the Eastern Slovakia on May 31.
"A man from Slovakia was expected to drive them to Austria for a financial reward. Police officers thwarted his plans, however, when a mobile police unit flagged down his car close to Sobranovce. After pulling over, the defendant jumped out of the vehicle and ran to Sobranovce, where the police captured and arrested him," said Denisa Baloghova, Slovak police spokesperson.
A remaining group of 14 Vietnamese citizens was apprehended on June 1 close to the village of Koromla in the Eastern Slovakia and extradited back to Ukraine.
"If the scheme had proven successful, the defendants would have collected an estimated profit of 17,000 euro (19,847 U.S. dollars)," added Baloghova.