A major police check, involving around fifty federal police officers (administrative and judicial) supported by the local police and its partners, was organized on Wednesday on the E40, at the Walhorn rest area (Lontzen, province of Liège), coming from Germany.
This action, lasting 8 hours, was not intended to intercept migrants but to get their hands on equipment such as small boats, motors, life jackets, etc. used by smugglers.
“We know today that small boats, these small boats which allow you to cross the Channel, are manufactured in China, transit through the East before being purchased individually by smugglers and are transported by private vehicles” , explains the head of the federal police department in Eupen, Sébastien Petre.
Significant resources, including a drone and even civil protection, were mobilized for this control action. “I was made aware of the control of a smuggler at the Lichtenbusch border during Euro 2024,” adds the head of department who ensures that controls of this type, but on a smaller scale, are carried out regularly.
If vehicles registered in Eastern countries, France or Germany were mainly checked, all types of private vehicles were subject to checks. “If related offenses are noted, they are fined,” assures Mr. Petre. This Wednesday, for example, we saw a return to the border for a person with a residence permit in Germany, a withdrawal of license for drug consumption or even an overweight car which had to be reduced. The results will be transmitted by the federal police on Thursday.
