BONN (Reuters) - Seven Kosovo Albanians died and 15 were seriously injured on Thursday when their van crashed into a tree at high speed as it tried to escape pursuing German border guards. A spokesman for the Saxony state Interior Ministry in Dresden said the accident happened shortly after four a.m. (0200 GMT) near the eastern German town of Weissenborn, about 20 km (12 miles) from the German-Czech border. Police believe the 24 people packed into the van were trying to cross illegally into Germany with the help of two Czech smugglers. The Czechs were also in the vehicle when it crashed after failing to negotiate a curve, but were uninjured. German border guards were about to inspect the vehicle at the frontier when it suddenly accelerated. The border guards pursued the vehicle, which at one point slowed down before accelerating again. „One can assume that we are dealing with a professional smuggling ring,“ said Steffen Meissner, a spokesman for the police in Freiberg, near the accident site. He said the windows of the rented van were covered with dark plastic. Police said the driver of the van had fled the scene and was on the run. They are using dogs and a helicopter to track down the man in the mountainous terrain.