On May 27 and 28, border guards in Augšdaugava and Rēzekne counties detained two Romanian and one Georgian citizen who were transporting people who illegally crossed the state border.
On May 27, border guards on the road in Skrudaliena parish with turned on headlights and a horn, using a loudspeaker, tried to stop an Opel car for inspection, but its driver did not comply with the lawful demands of the border guards and began to flee. The border guards immediately began to pursue the car. The driver of the vehicle also did not obey the demand of another crew of border guards in reflective vests on the road, who indicated the vehicle with a baton to the place of stopping. As a result of the escape, the pursued car drove off the carriageway and crashed. The driver of the vehicle began to flee, but the border guards detained him. When checking the car, the border guards found 10 people of Asian origin without valid travel documents and valid visas and residence permits in its cabin, who had previously illegally crossed the Belarus-Latvia border.
The border guards determined that three people might need medical assistance. The Emergency Medical Service was called to the scene. Three people were detained for illegally crossing the state border, the rest were returned to Belarus. The driver of the car, a Georgian citizen, was also detained in the pre-trial proceedings, who was staying in Latvia without the mandatory completed and submitted state threat prevention questionnaire. Administrative violation proceedings have been initiated for this violation.
Meanwhile, on May 28, the border guards, while carrying out operational measures, stopped a minibus and an accompanying Audi car in the Rēzekne region. Both vehicles were driven by Romanian citizens. While checking the minibus, border guards found 23 persons of Asian origin without valid travel documents and valid visas and residence permits, who had previously illegally crossed the Belarusian-Latvian border.
Criminal proceedings have been initiated against both Romanian and Georgian citizens under Part 31 of Section 285 of the Criminal Law for the illegal movement of a person across the state border, if they were committed during the enhanced border guard system operation regime or during a state of emergency declared due to a threat to the inviolability of the state border, regardless of the place of commission of the offense on the territory of Latvia.
A total of 30 persons were deterred from illegally crossing the state border in accordance with Section 4 of the State Border Guard Law.
Administrative violation proceedings have also been initiated against a Georgian citizen for failing to comply with the request to stop a vehicle by a person authorized to check the driver's documents.