Verdicts passed in the case of 71 migrants found dead in a truck

The four main defendants heard their verdicts in the case of the refrigeration car in which 71 dead migrants were found.

Defendants in the case of 71 dead migrants, Kecskeméth, June 14. Defendants in the case of 71 dead migrants, Kecskeméth, June 14. (Source: AP/TASR)

The case of 71 migrants found dead in 2015 near the Austrian village of Parndorf – close to Slovakia – the four main defendants were sentenced to 25 years in prison in the southern Hungarian town of Kecskemet, the Sme daily wrote in mid-June.

SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement
SkryťTurn off ads
Article continues after video advertisement

The first-instance verdict finds one Afghani and four Bulgarian citizens guilty of complicity in human smuggling and murder. None of them can leave prison sooner than in 25 years. Moreover, the Afghani man, who received asylum in Hungary but was then stripped of it, is expelled from Hungary for good, while the three Bulgarians are expelled for 10 years. Also, their possessions, worth 103 million forints (€322,000), will be confiscated.

SkryťTurn off ads
Read also: Refugees die in a truck near the Slovak border in Austria Read more 

A total of fourteen people were charged with human smuggling, MTI newswire informed.

In the case, fifty-nine men, four women and eight children were locked in the cargo part of the truck; they probably suffocated on Hungarian territory. The vehicle was found on the Austrian highway, near the village of Parndorf.

The truck was originally from Slovakia, although it changed owners repeatedly. It was sold from Slovakia by the Hyza poultry-processing company to the Hungarian company MasterMobilKer. The latter failed to remove ads from the vehicle, which caused the vehicle (and also the perpetrators) to be thought of as Slovak.

Top stories

Cycling routes can be found all around Bratislava.

Weekend: Dust off your bike and cycle along the Morava

Bike rides, creating your own art, the history of Book Month and more.


22 h
Volkswagen will make all-electric versions of the Porsche Cayenne luxury SUV.

News Digest: Volkswagen Slovakia to produce all-electric luxury SUV

LGBT+ minority could face new difficulties, a suspect is charged in the Daniel Tupý murder case.


24 h
Filip Toška holding chard in the hydroponic Hausnatura farm.

How a Mayan doomsday prophecy took a Slovak to hi-tech agriculture

Hydroponic farm run out of former telephone exchange.


9. mar
University student Daniel Tupý was murdered in November 2005 in Bratislava.

NAKA charges suspect in Daniel Tupý murder case

Eight out of the ten suspects detained this week have now been released.


24. mar
SkryťClose ad