Police in the Randstad – the western, urban part of the Netherlands, consisting of the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht and their surrounding areas – have arrested 15 people after an investigation into people smuggling.

The smugglers took money to transport people from countries such as Nepal and India to the Netherlands. There they were given false documents and entered into marriages of convenience with Dutch citizens. Such relationships eventually earned them the papers they needed to remain in the country. The people smuggled into the country in this manner paid large sums of money to both the smugglers and their ‘marriage partners’.

Announcing the arrests on Tuesday, the Public Prosecutor’s Office said three of the 15 are still in custody, among them a 66-year-old woman from the city of Leiden, who is considered to be the lynchpin of the operation. The investigation started in 2009, following an anonymous tip off.

© Radio Netherlands Worldwide