Alleged people smuggling gang member ‘made millions while on Universal Credit'
The group is believed to have used forged passports and visas of people with legitimate status in the UK to aid the arrival and subsequent employment in black market businesses of more than 500 Gambian citizens.
Based between West Yorkshire and Greater London, the alleged scheme is said to have developed into a wide-scale, dangerous criminal network earning millions.
The main suspect is believed to have a turnover of more than £1.3 million in his bank account, despite claiming to only earn £35,000 a year working for a furniture manufacturing company.
Another suspect is thought to have made an alleged turnover of more than £1 million across two bank accounts, whilst simultaneously receiving Universal Credit.
Immigration enforcement officers carried out raids in Greater London and Batley, West Yorkshire and arrested seven suspects between the ages of 30 and 50 years old on Tuesday.
Of the seven arrested, four men and two women have been charged in connection with the investigation and have been remanded in custody.
Footage released by the Home Office showed one of the suspects being led away from a property by police.
The gang is said to have targeted Gambian nationals, including booking their flights, providing housing for the migrants on arrival, and setting them up with illegal work.
Operating across the country, they allegedly charged around £5,000 per person for the full service.
The five men and three women are believed to have sent fake documents to beneficiaries to evade detection from police.
At the various addresses visited, officers seized several counterfeit identity documents, which are thought to have been used in this alleged criminal scheme.
Members of the gang are also suspected of reusing fraudulent documents for different imposters hoping to make it to the UK illegally.
An ongoing investigation revealed a substantial quantity of images of passports found on the main suspect's mobile phone.
Minister for Border Security and Asylum Dame Angela Eagle said: 'This operation is a clear display that we will not stand by and let evil criminal gangs abuse our immigration system.
'This suspected gang promised their beneficiaries a better life here in the UK. Instead, they face heinous levels of exploitation, which is exactly why we are working with law enforcement to ensure survivors of modern slavery are supported and the criminal gangs face justice.'
Ben Ryan, chief operating officer at Medaille Trust – a charity that supports the victims of modern slavery and worked on the investigation – said: 'Medaille Trust is delighted to have collaborated on this operation and to have played a part in ensuring that victims were identified and supported to begin their recovery as survivors.
'We believe that collaborative efforts like this between the Home Office and civil society provide a model for confronting the evils of modern slavery; with a focus on both pursuing abusers and recognising and supporting survivors.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Social media ads promoting small boat crossings to UK to be banned
Ministers are to outlaw social media adverts promoting journeys on small boats across the Channel to asylum seekers. The government will create a UK-wide criminal offence that could lead to perpetrators being sentenced for up to five years in prison and a hefty fine. Though facilitating illegal immigration is already a crime, the change will make it a specific offence to create material for online publication that promotes or offers services that would lead to a breach of UK immigration law. This includes advertising small boat crossings, selling fake passports, visas and other travel documents, and promoting opportunities for illegal work in the UK. Ministers will make the change via an amendment to the border security bill, which is making its way through its final stages in the House of Lords. Eighty per cent of migrants who arrived in the UK on small boats told government officials that they had used social media during their journey, including to locate or communicate with people smugglers, according to Home Office data. The department said it wanted to crack down on smugglers selling a false narrative about life in the UK to desperate asylum seekers by criminalising those promising illegal work online. Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, said: 'Selling the false promise of a safe journey to the UK and a life in this country – whether on or offline – simply to make money, is nothing short of immoral. Sign up to Headlines UK Get the day's headlines and highlights emailed direct to you every morning after newsletter promotion 'These criminals have no issue with leading migrants to life-threatening situations using brazen tactics on social media. We are determined to do everything we can to stop them – wherever they operate.' The change will also make it a crime to post online content that encourages someone to break UK immigration law in exchange for money. Rob Jones, the director general for operations at the National Crime Agency (NCA), said: 'We know many of the people-smuggling networks risking lives transporting people to the UK promote their services to migrants using social media. The majority of migrants arriving in the UK will have engaged with smugglers in this way.' The NCA has taken action against organised crime groups using social media to promote crossings, including a south Wales-based gang convicted in November 2024 after smuggling thousands of people across Europe. The gang used social media videos posted by people who had made successful crossings to promote the service. Another network operated by the Preston-based smuggler Amanj Hasan Zada, who was later jailed for 17 years, also posted videos of people thanking Zada for helping them. There have been cases of Albanian people smugglers who have used social media to promote £12,000 'package deals' to get to the UK including accommodation and employment, which will also fall under the scope of the new law.
BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
Home Office pauses asylum hotel plans in Spelthorne
Government plans to exclusively house male asylum seekers at a hotel have been paused. It comes as Surrey Police put a dispersal order in place in Stanwell, which allows officers to remove individuals who are causing or likely to cause disorder or crime. The force said it took the step following reports of criminal damage and anti-social behaviour after 100 people protested outside The Stanwell Hotel on Thursday. Spelthorne Borough Council (SBC) says families, including vulnerable women and children, seeking asylum are currently staying at the hotel. 'Integrating well' SBC leader Joanne Sexton had warned that a Home Office proposal to house men at the hotel was causing concern in the local community. She added it would also mean that the families - who she said were "integrating well and building community ties" - would be relocated. Ms Sexton welcomed the "temporary pause" by the government, which met with SBC on Friday. But she said she was "still concerned about the potential consequences of the proposed changes and the impact they will have". The Home Office has said it is fixing a "broken system" and that the security of local communities around hotels was always a "paramount concern". "From over 400 asylum hotels open in summer 2023, costing almost £9m a day, there are now less than 210," it added."We want them all closed by the end of this Parliament."Asylum seekers in hotels fell by almost 6,000 in the first three months of 2025 - down 15% from December, according to the Home Office. More talks planned The Surrey Police dispersal order, in place until 21:29 BST on Saturday, covers Town Lane, Trinity Close, St. Mary's Crescent, Village Park and Lauser Park."We respect the right to peaceful protest and will facilitate this wherever possible where it is safe to do so," said Surrey Police. "However, criminal offences and public disorder will not be tolerated."We will take robust action against anyone who commits a criminal offence," the force added. An SBC meeting is due to take place on 7 August to discuss the matter further.
Daily Mirror
5 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Bonnie Blue doc fury as kids can watch despite strict new porn age-check rules
Channel 4 is facing probes by politicians and broadcasting regulator Ofcom over the documentary about the former Only Fans content creator, who claims to have had sex with 1,057 men in 12 hours The shadow Home Office minister has labelled it 'bizarre' that children can view a TV documentary about sex marathon star Bonnie Blue, despite new stringent age checks designed to prevent them from accessing pornography. Channel 4 is currently under scrutiny by lawmakers and Ofcom, the broadcasting watchdog, for airing a show about the ex-Only Fans content creator who boasts of sleeping with 1,057 men in just 12 hours. Despite the channel's policy requiring viewers to be at least 16 to create an account, the absence of a robust age verification system allows minors to simply falsify their birth dates to gain access. It comes after Katie Price worries fans with appearance in family photo after explaining weight loss. The programme, which includes explicit scenes of Bonnie nude, engaging in sexual acts, and creating adult films with other porn stars, seems to contradict the Government's fresh Online Safety Act that mandates age verification to block underage users from adult content websites. When quizzed on Times Radio about the feasibility of a credible online safety framework given the ease of accessing such material on a public broadcaster's platform, shadow Home Office minister Katie Lam remarked: "It seems bizarre to me," reports the Daily Star. She added, "There is clearly a consistency problem both in terms of content and in terms of platform." However, Channel 4 has defended its streaming service, insisting that it employs industry-standard controls to prevent those under 18 from viewing content that's not suitable for their age group. Bonnie Blue - whose real name is Tia Billinger from Nottinghamshire - has boasted of raking in as much as £1.5 million monthly through the OnlyFans platform via publicity stunts including her world record bid to sleep with the maximum number of men within a 24-hour period - until she received a ban from the platform. Policing minister Dame Diana Johnson admitted she hadn't realised just how accessible the documentary was for viewers to watch. When questioned whether Channel 4 had erred in airing the programme and if Ofcom ought to step in, she responded: "That's an important question that I think is worth considering." She continued: "I am very happy to go away and consider that.". The spokesman said: "I haven't actually clicked on in the way that you suggested is available.". The spokesman said: "But I'm very happy to do that and to look and to raise it with the technology secretary Peter Kyle." Fresh legislation called the Online Safety Act came into force last week, aimed at safeguarding youngsters on the internet by establishing fresh regulations for social media platforms and search engines. The most robust safeguards within the legislation were crafted to stop children from viewing dangerous and unsuitable material. This encompassed age checks for adult websites like YouPorn. The documentary - titled 1000 Men and Me: The Bonnie Blue Story - tracks the influencer as cameras document her everyday existence. The documentary synopsis reveals that it delves 'behind the headlines, clickbait and rage bait to discover what life's really like in Bonnie's wild orbit, how she got here and what's really going on behind those steely blue eyes'. It also probes the contentious question surrounding her - is she a 'dangerous predator' pandering to male fantasies and perpetuating the patriarchy, or an empowered, sex-positive businesswoman having the last laugh? Audiences were taken aback by the content. One viewer expressed their shock on Twitter: "Literally 3 seconds in and Bonnie Blue is already disgusting." Before its release, director Victoria Silver emphasised the importance of explicit scenes for the documentary. She stated: "If I was making a film about a musician or some other kind of performer their work would be in there.". The spokesman said: "I think it's really important to see what she does." Channel 4's commissioning editor Tim Hancock argued that it was the broadcaster's 'job to tell stories like this that are at the edge of modern morality'.
