BERLIN A fake marriage ring that paired
Portuguese women with Nigerian men who paid thousands of euros for a chance to
gain EU residency have been busted by German police on Tuesday.
According to AFP report, police
arrested five suspects, including four women, as they carried out raids in more
than 40 locations across the German capital, Berlin police and prosecutors said
in a statement. Authorities
also raided homes in nearby Potsdam, Frankfurt and the eastern city of
Goerlitz.
Investigators
believe the suspects recruited women in Portugal, while in Nigeria, the gang
charged men up to 13,000 euros ($15,000) for the scheme, with part of the money
going to the Portuguese "brides".
The
ring would then falsify documents such as marriage certificates.
Armed
with the fake marriage certificate, the pretend couples would meet briefly in
Germany to present themselves to authorities and apply for a legal, EU
residency permit for the "husband".
"So
far we have established more than 70 cases where marriages were faked to obtain
EU residency permits," the police statement said.
Officers
seized hard drives, mobile phones and ID documents in the raids, as well as
300,000 euros in cash, according to DPA.
German
police said they worked with Europol and their Portuguese counterparts to smash
the ring, and that searches also took place in Portugal.
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