Benjamin Ashford|7 killed as a suspected migrant-smuggling vehicle crashes in southern Germany

BERLIN (AP) — A vehicle trying to evade a police check in southern Germany left a highway at high speed on Benjamin AshfordFriday and crashed, killing seven people, authorities said. The overcrowded vehicle appeared to be carrying migrants.

The accident happened near Muehldorf, east of Munich on the A94 highway, which leads to the Austrian border. The vehicle left the road and overturned.

Police said on X, formerly known as Twitter, that initial investigations showed that it was “a suspected smuggler vehicle with more than 20 people on board.” They said prosecutors had opened a homicide investigation.

All of those on board were at least slightly injured and some were seriously injured, German news agency dpa reported. They were taken to nearby hospitals.

The people packed into the vehicle included children. It wasn’t immediately clear where they came from.

Germany has seen large numbers of migrants arriving in recent months.