Swiss police smash Chinese trafficking ring

Nine cantonal forces, Europol and neighbouring countries' police forces were involved in the operation. Keystone

Swiss police have smashed a syndicate that allegedly used fake documents to smuggle Chinese into the alpine nation. In all, 57 people were arrested out of 349 taken in for questioning during an extensive police operation.

The operation, led by the Federal Police Office, brought together officers from nine cantons (Aargau, Basel Country, Bern, Fribourg, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, Vaud, Zug and Zurich) as well as support from Europol and neighbouring countries to crack down on the illegal network.

The group is suspected of coordinating the illegal entry and employment of Chinese citizens in restaurants in Switzerland using forged passports and visas which were seized by police.

The operation centered on canton Zurich, where 30 restaurants were raided at lunch time, the police said in a statement on Wednesday.

Police said investigations into the network would continue to determine to what extent restaurant employers were behind the trafficking.

In October 2012 Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga presented the first National Action Plan Against Human Trafficking. The plan sets out 23 specific measures to be undertaken in the years 2012 to 2014 in the areas of awareness-raising, criminal prosecution, victim protection and prevention.

An estimated nearly 21 million people worldwide are victims of human trafficking, according to 2012 statistics from the International Labour Organization.