A 39-year-old man was charged with “various crimes” including aiding illegal immigration, document theft, and technical notation and harassment, last Monday in the municipality of Santa Maria da Feira.
In a communication sent to newsrooms this Wednesday, the National Republican Guard (GNR) indicated that the man “unlawfully retained the identification documents of a victim, coercing them to perform duties different from those stipulated in the work contract.”
In the course of investigative efforts by the Coastal and Border Control Unit (UCCF), it was further found that the individual “did not pay the agreed salary and demanded the victim to pay expenses related to transportation from their country of origin, as well as the legalization of their status in the national territory.”
Moreover, the suspect “exercised abusive control over the victim both at the workplace and residence, by installing surveillance cameras without proper legal authorization.”
The GNR operation concluded with three searches: a home, a commercial establishment, and a vehicle.
Documents belonging to the victim and other foreign citizens were seized, along with five surveillance cameras, a mobile phone, and 150 euros in cash.
According to the security force, the suspect was charged, and the matter was reported to the Judicial Court of Santa Maria da Feira.
In the note, the GNR emphasizes that this “operation falls within the UCCF’s tasks in combating crime associated with illegal immigration, protecting victims of human trafficking, and enforcing compliance with legislation regarding the entry and stay of foreigners in the national territory.”
Punishments for aiding illegal immigration can reach up to eight years in prison.
According to Article 183 of Law 23/2007 dated July 4, concerning the Law of Foreigners, the crime of aiding illegal immigration is punishable by imprisonment.
The law, published in Diário da República, states that anyone who facilitates or aids the “illegal entry or transit of a foreign citizen in national territory is punishable by imprisonment of up to three years.”
Furthermore, “anyone who facilitates or aids, in any way, the entry, stay, or transit of a foreign citizen in national territory, with profit intent, is punished with imprisonment of one to four years.”
The law also dictates that “if the acts are committed by transporting or keeping the foreign citizen in inhumane or degrading conditions or endangering their life or causing serious harm to their physical integrity or death, the agent is punished with imprisonment of two to eight years.”
