Latvian border guards kept busy by illegal immigrants

According to a report from LETA, some 64 illegal immigrants have been detained by the State Border Guard between the months of January 2015 to May 2015. Most of the immigrants originate from Vietnam.

People are crossing into Latvia through locations far away from the official border stations, and of those 64 illegal immigrants recently detained, 58 of them were citizens of Vietnam, five were from Russia and one was from Tajikistan. Some 17 other people were arrested for arranging the illegal migration and/or for carrying out the entry into Lativa. The people arrested were from Russia, Tajikistan, Latvia and Poland.

During 2014, there was a total of 139 illegal immigrants found entering Lativa, with 98 of those caught being citizens of Vietnam.

There is growing concern amongst the Border Guard regarding how to provide accommodation to the immigrants due to the continued increase of migration into Lativa. In 2011, the Olaine centre was forced to shut down which left the Daugavpils centre the only other possibility for shelter. A minimum-security facility in Liepaja has recently been set up.

To help bring down the amount of people who require shelter, 8 foreigners were fast tracked for deportation from the country.