Human trafficking attempt thwarted at Austrian border

Police report that an attempt to smuggle two Ukrainian nationals from the Czech Republic into Austria was thwarted on Thursday afternoon. The 49 year-old male and a 52 year-old woman were discovered hiding in the trunk of a car bearing German plates, as it attempted to cross the border into Austria near Znojmo, south Moravia. The driver of the vehicle is identified as a 39 year-old Turkish national, who is currently in custody and charged with human trafficking; if found guilty he faces up to one year in jail. Border police discovered the couple in the truck of the car after noticing that the vehicle's rear was riding low, despite there being only one visible person inside the car. The Ukrainian nationals, who say that they took a bus from Ukraine to Brno, where they were met by the trafficker, are also in custody and awaiting deportation from the Czech Republic.