RIGA — Four Latvian citizens who were part of a people smuggling chain for illegal Afghan immigrants have been arrested in Finland.

Human smuggling into the EU and Schengen zone is a key target for people from third-world countries who cannot get visas. Those aiming to enter Europe pay huge sums of money and risk their lives in hopes of being able to find work and a better life.

Police have been monitoring the case for some time now, yle.fi reported. Previously they caught four Estonian mules, the lowest workers in the smuggling business who actually take the cargo, in this case an Afghan immigrant, across the border.

The police think that the Latvians are more important in the smuggling operation than the Estonians. They did not say how many illegal immigrants they think this crime gang has helped get across the border illegally.

It is estimated that the immigrants, who are thought to pay around $10,000 for the trip, are brought into the Schengen zone via Belarus and then travel through the Baltic countries and then take a ferry to Finland.

The Finnish authorities believe that the smuggling king pins are still at large and importing immigrants to other countries too.

The Economist wrote that in 2005, an estimated 800,000 people were smuggled into the European Union. Around 250,000 people are believed to be smuggled in to the United States over the Mexico border, too.

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