The increasing number of deaths adds urgency to questions about when and how agents should engage in high-speed chases as they pursue smugglers and migrants.
Tag Archives: Smuggling
At Least 16 Dead After Migrant Boat Capsizes Off Greece
The wreck late Friday in the Aegean Sea, the third in Greek waters in three days, was another reminder of the risks asylum seekers face.
Second Deadly Migrant Boat Crash Off Greece This Week
Ninety people were left stranded after Thursday’s accident. The crash came in a week that also saw scores of migrants die in wrecks off the coast of Libya.
Three Dead and Many Missing as Migrant Boat Sinks Near Greece
The sinking came just weeks after 27 people drowned trying to cross the English Channel, another stark reminder of the lethal risks facing asylum seekers.
A Trove of Artifacts Officials Call ‘Stolen’ Are Returned to Italy
The Manhattan district attorney’s office is repatriating 200 objects it confiscated from major museums and collections. Many were tied to one dealer.
Why Was Haiti’s President Assassinated?
An investigation into the killing of the Caribbean nation’s leader points to corruption and drug trafficking at the highest levels of government.
Migrant Truck Crash in Mexico Kills More Than 50
The migrants, mostly from Guatemala and apparently U.S.-bound, had been crammed into a tractor-trailer that flipped and slammed into a bridge in southern Mexico.
Michael Steinhardt, Billionaire, Surrenders $70 Million in Stolen Relics
The hedge fund pioneer is barred for life from buying more antiquities. He turned over 180 stolen objects that had decorated his homes and office.
On Syria’s Ruins, a Drug Empire Flourishes
Powerful associates of Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, are making and selling captagon, an illegal amphetamine, creating a new narcostate on the Mediterranean.
Belgian Port City Grapples With a Flood of Cocaine
Antwerp has become the main port of entry into Europe for the drug, which is being blamed for a surge of violence that has prompted some Belgian officials to call for a war on drugs.
Undeterred by Channel’s Perils, Desperate Migrants Still Plan to Cross
The number of migrants setting off into the English Channel by boat has soared in recent months. The deaths Wednesday of at least 27 people trying to make the crossing illustrate how dangerous it is.
Greece to Put Aid Workers Who Helped Migrants on Trial on Espionage Charges
The country’s conservative government is toughening its stance on migration and on groups working with migrants, aligning itself with a hardening climate across Europe.
Looking for a Stolen Idol? Visit the Museum of the Manhattan D.A.
Investigators have seized so many looted artifacts — more than 3,000 — that storing and caring for them until they can be returned is now a full-time job.
It’s Time to End the Pandemic Emergency at the Border
Title 42 was supposed to be an emergency measure. It’s time to end its use.
Migrants Say Belarusians Took Them to E.U. Border and Supplied Wire Cutters
Iraqi Kurds and other migrants said they were fleeing despair at home, but Belarus encouraged them, offering visas and helping them get to the border.
2 Ivory Smugglers Captured in International Operation, U.S. Says
The undercover joint operation by the U.S. and Congolese governments also resulted in the seizure of millions of dollars’ worth of illegal wildlife plunder.
Why the Taliban Desperately Need Cash to Run Afghanistan
The group has long tapped underground banks and opium to fund Afghanistan’s insurgency. Fixing the nation’s problems will require a lot more than that.
Fossils Seized in Police Raid Demystify a Prehistoric Flying Reptile
Among the 3,000 fossils seized at a Brazilian port in 2013 was an almost complete skeleton from the pterosaur species Tupandactylus navigans, preserved in six limestone slabs.
Montenegro Pledges to Stamp Out a Deadly Trade: Cigarette Smuggling
Investigators and journalists were killed while trying to expose smugglers. Now the country is cracking down on a trade it once protected.
A Texas Sheriff’s Grim Task: Finding Bodies as Migrant Deaths Surge
After working in oil fields, Oscar Carrillo eyed the stability of law enforcement or funeral work. As a border sheriff, he is doing both.
He Guarded Haiti’s Slain President. And He’s the Target of a Drug Inquiry.
Officials are examining whether President Jovenel Moïse’s killing was tied to the drug trade. The man in charge of his safety was a suspect in a major trafficking case, they say.
He Saved 31 People at Sea. Then Got a 142-Year Prison Sentence in Greece.
Greece is prosecuting migrants on charges of people smuggling, and imposing heavy jail terms. Rights groups say many migrants are being unfairly accused and sentenced.
Kim Jong-un Calls K-Pop a ‘Vicious Cancer’
South Korean music, movies and dramas are winning the hearts of young North Koreans. Their influence is seen as a threat to Mr. Kim’s grip on society.
George Jung, Who Made Millions Smuggling Cocaine, Dies at 78
Part of the Medellín drug cartel, he was imprisoned multiple times and was later played by Johnny Depp in the 2001 movie “Blow.”
‘Will I Recognize You?’ She Traveled 2,500 Miles to Reach Her Mother.
Migrant children are crossing the southwestern border by the thousands each week. They are often rejoining parents who immigrated to the United States years ago.
Five in Houston Face Charges in Suspected Case of Human Smuggling
Police officers in Houston responded to a kidnapping tip on Friday and found nearly 100 undocumented people crammed into a house, according to the authorities.
Police Find More Than 90 People Crammed Into a Houston Home
Houston police officers found more than 90 people — some showing symptoms of Covid-19 — “all huddled together” on Friday in what they believe may be a case of human smuggling.
Man Caught Smuggling 35 Songbirds Into J.F.K. Airport, Authorities Say
Kevin Andre McKenzie of Guyana concealed finches inside hair curlers in his clothing, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said.
Armed Groups Step Into Venezuela as Lawlessness Grows
With Venezuela in shambles, criminals and insurgents run large stretches of the nation’s territory. We traveled through one of the regions under their control.
A Man Who Shipped Himself in a Crate Wants to Find the Men Who Helped
Over 50 years after Brian Robson mailed himself out of Australia, emerging almost 8,000 miles away, he is looking for two friends who assisted.
‘I Have No Idea Where My Daughter Is’: Migrant Parents Are Desperate for News
With a record 20,000 migrant children in shelters and detention facilities, many parents have waited weeks to learn what happened to their children after they crossed the border.
Man Is Charged With Smuggling in Crash That Killed 13 Migrants in California
More than two dozen people were crowded into an S.U.V. that collided with a tractor-trailer near the border. Jose Cruz Noguez was accused of coordinating the smuggling attempt.
Nearly 200 Baby Tortoises Are Seized at Galápagos Airport
The tortoises were found on Sunday wrapped in plastic inside a red suitcase that was bound for mainland Ecuador. A police officer has been taken into custody, the authorities said.
How Illicit Oil Is Smuggled Into North Korea With China’s Help
New satellite images obtained by The New York Times show that China has allowed tankers to use its infrastructure and territorial waters to deliver oil to North Korea.
Police Find 16 People Hidden in a Truck in England
Although there were no deaths, the case had echoes of a smuggling episode in the country in 2019, in which 39 people from Vietnam died in a refrigerated tractor-trailer.
What We Learned From Our Investigation into Covert Oil Deliveries to North Korea
We uncovered how one ship helped North Korea get oil despite sanctions. Here are five takeaways from the investigation.
On Mexico’s Border With U.S.,Desperation as Migrant Traffic Piles Up
Mexico is struggling to deal with a new wave of migrants expelled from the U.S. while even more come north hoping to cross. Shelters that were empty four months ago are now having to turn many away.
Migrants in Deadly Crash Had Crossed Through Border Wall, Officials Say
The Border Patrol said two S.U.V.s packed with people apparently crossed through a breach in the wall. One vehicle went on to collide with a tractor-trailer rig, killing 13 migrants.
Smugglers Throw Migrants Overboard; at Least 20 Are Feared Drowned
Several times in recent years, migrants trying to cross between Djibouti and Yemen have been thrown into the sea.
Pigeons: Nuisance Animals, or Expert Accomplices in Diamond Smuggling?
In “Flight of the Diamond Smugglers,” Matthew Gavin Frank details the surprising role pigeons play in South African diamond smuggling.
New Zealand Sentences Woman Caught With Cacti Tied to Her Body
The woman, Wenqing Li, pleaded guilty to violating biosecurity laws in two attempts to smuggle nearly 1,000 cacti and succulents into the country.
Risking Everything to Come to America on the Open Ocean
The border with Mexico extends well beyond the desert. Tighter enforcement on land has driven record numbers of migrants to attempt dangerous crossings by water.
Who is Jonathan Braun? Trump’s Last Minute Pardon Still Faces Accusations of Violence
Jonathan Braun’s 10-year sentence for running a drug ring was commuted by the departing president. The White House did not mention that he faces separate accusations of violence and threats.
In a Village of Widows, the Opium Trade Has Taken a Deadly Toll
Afghan men in an impoverished border settlement die trying to smuggle opium into Iran, leaving behind loved ones forced to survive on their own.
Armed Mexicans Were Smuggled In to Guard Border Wall, Whistle-Blowers Say
In a complaint unsealed on Friday, whistle-blowers working on President Trump’s wall said that contractors were illegally bringing in Mexican guards to protect construction sites.
He Once Trafficked in Rare Birds. Now, He Tells How It’s Done.
After a chance encounter in Brazil, Johann Zillinger became one of the world’s most prolific wildlife smugglers. Three decades and two prison stints later, he says he has gone straight.
For Young Rohingya Brides, Marriage Means a Perilous, Deadly Crossing
Girls and young women from refugee camps in Bangladesh, promised to men they have never met, are undertaking the dangerous journey to Malaysia to join them.
The Ship That Stopped 7,000 Migrants, and Smuggled 700,000 Cigarettes
The Caprera, an Italian warship, was deployed to Tripoli to help combat people-smugglers in Libya. Some of its sailors gathered a cargo of contraband.
Fossil Reveals ‘One of the Cutest Dinosaurs’ Ever Found
While many fossils have been flattened by time and the elements, a titanosaur found in an egg was preserved in three dimensions.
How American Guns Are Fueling U.K. Crime
Handguns are quietly being smuggled into Britain, despite tough gun-control laws. The police fear that the illegal weapons are contributing to a rise in gang-related crime.