‘Traffickers’ say they were helping police

TWO men accused of attempting to smuggle nine people from African countries out of the TRNC and into Turkey on a boat claimed they were simply “helping the police”, a court heard on Wednesday.

The “refugees”, who had entered the country via South Cyprus, were arrested at 1am on Tuesday morning during a police operation after being dropped off by car at the Tatlısu coast, the court was told.

They had been told that they would be taken to Turkey and from there to Belgium after handing over thousands of dollars. The group of seven men and two women were aged between 23 and 38 and were citizens of countries such as Cameroon, Ivory Coast and the Republic of the Congo, reports said.

They appeared at Gazimağusa District Court on Tuesday and were remanded in custody for three days.

Two suspects appeared before the same court the following day, accused of “establishing an alliance with the intention of committing a crime”.

Egyptian Muhammed Ahmed Abdelghany Mahmoud and TRNC citizen Ali Minnoş, who were both remanded in custody, denied the charge.

“I helped the police, I have committed no crime,” Mahmoud told the court.

Minnoş said: “I didn’t take money from anyone. I was cooperating with the police. There are messages on my phone. I acted together with them. When we picked up the Africans from home, the police were behind us.

“The police said, ‘Help us catch the Africans. We will support you in every way’, so I helped them. I have not committed any crime.”

Police inspector Ayhan Arabi said seven of the migrants had identified Mahmoud and Minnoş from photographs. They gave statements that they had been taken to Minnoş’s home in Gaziköy and had paid him $1,500 each to take them to Turkey.

Reports said Minnoş had told the group to “get ready” to leave on Monday and that they were driven to Tatlısu in two cars “one white, one black” before being abandoned.

Mr Arabi said two other migrants — named as Noumbe Mballa and Paul Ngasa — denied knowing the suspects. It was established by police, however, that Mballa “worked for Minnoş” and had introduced him to Ngasa.

Mr Arabi told Judge Hasan Boşnak that “several suspects” were still wanted in connection with the case.