Greek police have arrested seven suspected members of migrant smuggling rings in the country's north in recent days. In one case, officers found 12 people crammed into a vehicle.
A police statement last week said that, in two separate operations, border officials once more took several people into custody on suspicion of attempting to move migrants illegally across borders.
A total of 31 people were discovered hiding in various vehicles belonging to the alleged smugglers.
In one of the incidents, police stopped a vehicle carrying 12 people in an overcrowded car.
One of the police operations took place in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, which is situated roughly 250 kilometers from the Turkish border.
The other was reportedly carried out closer to the Greek-Turkish border.
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Fewer land crossings into Greece
Greek authorities have long erected a border fence along most of the border; nevertheless, thousands of irregular migrants continue to cross into the EU member state each year — in nearly all instances with the help of people smuggling gangs.
Most irregular arrivals to Greece have been by sea, many departing from Libya. However, nearly 7,000 of the roughly 34,000 undocumented migrants who entered Greece so far this year crossed the land border, according to eKathimerini.