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Slavi and his fellow smugglers were caught by the police while driving up a hill on a single track road. They had four cars packed with Afghan migrants, with nine or 10 people in each car. The Bulgarian-Serbian border was only a few meters away. The police car turned on its blue light and there was no escape for the smugglers. The Balkan migration route is becoming increasingly important, with more irregular border crossings than the Central Mediterranean route through Italy. Slavi's friends are still in prison for people-smuggling, enduring terrible conditions of cold, damp, and hunger. One friend, Ivajlo, even had a stroke while imprisoned in Hungary. Bulgarian authorities have not responded to requests to visit the prison. Slavi and his friend Svetlo take us to a basement in their village to talk privately. They explain that their village is a popular recruiting spot for drivers who transport migrants across Bulgaria to the Serbian border. Slavi admits that he used to see smuggling as a way to help migrants escape and have a better life. However, they were eventually caught because they did not earn enough to pay off the corrupt police. Slavi's allegations of police corruption are supported by Pavlin Kodzhahristov, the former head of the anti-corruption unit in the Bulgarian interior ministry. Kodzhahristov gives examples of officers engaging in illegal activities, such as hiding people in their cars and providing misleading information. The drivers also face the risk of road accidents while trying to avoid arrest. In one tragic incident, a truck was found abandoned with 18 suffocated Afghan migrants inside. Hedayatullah, one of the survivors, blames the smugglers for not helping them during the accident. Slavi and Svetlo are appalled by the incident and emphasize the importance of dissuading young Bulgarians from joining the smuggling trade. Both men have turned down lucrative offers for smuggling and are now living an honest life.