Refugees entering Europe are often forced into crime rings and slave labor, according to findings by international police body Interpol released over the weekend.
Interpol's recent announcement that over 10,000 migrant children have gone missing on the way to Europe also showed that fear of government by refugees created a windfall for criminal enterprises. As refugees strive to reach Germany and other countries rumored to openly welcome refugees, they are said to often work with criminal groups to earn more cash to continue their journey.
"For a long time, prostitution of illegal immigrants was limited to the community they came from, but in recent years this 'market' is open to the Europeans. This is new. This problem is particularly present in Nigerian networks. Women prostitute themselves under duress of a voodoo rite, the Gugu. These networks also forcing men into begging," Stéphane Quéré told Atlantico.
According to researcher Fabrice Balanche, part of the issue behind migrant involvement in crime is refugees' inability to adapt.
"It is difficult to fight against this phenomenon, as migrants come from countries where "mafias" are ubiquitous. Extended families are the foundation of society and it is through them that the individual has access to a job and enjoy protection," Balanche told Atlantico.
According to Balanche, the only way to combat the phenomenon of crime waves and ethnic gangs, is through government intervention and integration of the refugees into their new countries' societies.
