Tunnels have previously been found in Lithuania, according to Baltic media, but this is the first time one has been used to cross into Latvia.
“This is the first case in which a tunnel has been used for illegal crossing of the state border into Latvia. No signs of violations had previously been detected in this exact location, and no detentions of persons illegally crossing the state border had occurred there,” Dombrava wrote on X.
Authorities returned all 15 people to their “country of departure” and are continuing to inspect the area around the tunnel.
Latvia launched an operation Tuesday to strengthen border security. Dombrava has described illegal border crossings from Belarus as a “hybrid threat.”
Authorities have prevented more than 9,000 illegal attempts to cross the border from Belarus so far this year, the Latvian State Border Guard said in a press release.