National Crime Agency officers joined an international crackdown on cross-border smuggling in Bulgaria. Operation Balkan Bridge 2, jointly hosted by the Bulgarian National Customs Agency and the Bulgarian Border Police, ran from 28 September to 4 October. NCA teams worked alongside partners from the US, Germany, France, Greece and Frontex at multiple Bulgarian entry and exit border checkpoints. Officers focused on known routes, including the Bulgaria-Serbia, Bulgaria-Greece and Bulgaria-Turkish borders, where small boat equipment is transported to Europe. During the operation, investigators seized two eight-metre inflatable boats. Each was capable of carrying around 70 people and was identified as intended for dangerous Channel crossings. Bulgarian partners also seized 37 similar boats earlier in 2026. The operation also produced major haul seizures. Teams found more than a thousand parts for firearms and ammunition, 300,000 smuggled cigarettes and cigars, counterfeit goods, and 58 kilos of drugs, mainly cannabis. Nine people being smuggled illegally through the border in lorries were also stopped. Three detector dogs trained and donated by the UK joined the activity, including one dog involved in a drugs seizure. NCA Regional Manager Kenny Dron said Operation Balkan Bridge 2 expanded cooperation with Bulgarian law enforcement to disrupt networks behind threats including organised immigration crime, drugs and firearms smuggling. The latest status is that the operation has been carried out and the investigation remains ongoing.