7 arrested in Greece in migrant smuggling ring

THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — An airline pilot and a ground crew staff member were among seven people arrested in Greece on suspicion of participating in a ring smuggling migrants onto flights from the eastern Greek city of Thessaloniki to other EU countries, police said Wednesday.

Giorgos Pantelakos, head of the Thessaloniki immigrant division, said the ring allegedly provided forged identity cards and passports and arranged to put migrants on flights to other EU countries, mostly to Germany. The ring, believed to have been active since October 2013, charged the mainly Syrian migrants an estimated 3,000-4,000 euros ($3,800-$5,000) each.