Iraqi man arrested as police swoop on English Channel people smuggling gang

The 25-year-old was allegedly part of a network that moved boats in vehicles with hidden compartments

German police raid a storage facility where the gang's boats were stored. Photo: Europol

An Iraqi man has been arrested as part of a Europe-wide operation against people smugglers transporting boats to northern France to be used to cross the English Channel.

The boats and other equipment were hidden in specially modified vehicles.

The 25-year-old, who has been living in Germany, was detained at Charleroi Airport in Belgium while attempting to board a flight to Greece. He was arrested on suspicion of being part of a criminal people smuggling organisation.

His arrest was one of seven made as part of an investigation that targeted a criminal network based in Germany, which smuggled Middle Eastern and East African migrants across the English Channel with low-quality inflatable boats, said Europol.

The criminal network, active since 2023, transported nautical equipment from storage spaces in Germany to be deployed in northern France.

“Drivers recruited via online platforms for this purpose transported the boats, jackets and other gear in modified vehicles with darkened windows and special compartments for the transportation of the equipment,” said Europol, the EU’s law enforcement agency.

“The criminal network was highly co-ordinated, arranging several trips per day. The illicit proceeds were laundered via the Hawala underground banking system.”

Jery cans for storing fuel for the boats were seized in the raids. Photo: Europol

As part of the operation German Federal Police also raided eight properties and three storage, making five arrests, in the of North Rhine-Westphalia, on Thursday under warrants issued by a Belgian Court. Officers seized 90 life vests, jerry cans, two firearms and more than 47 electronic devices.

Another arrest was made in Calabria, in Italy, also a warrants issued by the court. The Iraqi man, who is in custody, appeared before a judge on March 11, the day after he was arrested, but was not disclosed Europol until today.

Smuggling hotspot

An investigation by The National recently revealed that Hawala is an essential part of the people smugglers’ operations in northern France and Iraqi Kurdistan.

The system allows money to be received from migrants and transferred among the smugglers away from the prying eyes of law enforcement.

The investigation exposed the town of Ranya in Iraqi Kurdistan as a hub for people smuggling.

Other Europol-led action against people smugglers has included dismantling a gang of people smugglers responsible for trafficking 700 migrants from Turkey through Bulgaria and Serbia to parts of the EU.

The Syrian-led gang in one incident smuggled 150 people in the back of a lorry, according to the EU's law enforcement agency Europol.

Meanwhile, An Iraqi-born people smuggler who boasted of making $2 million arranging for migrants to cross the English Channel illegally in small boats was recently sentenced to nearly five years in jail.

Pistiwan Jameel, 55, who came to the UK from Iraq in 2002, had contacts with people-smuggling gangs in France and would broker spaces for his clients while also collecting payments in the UK.

In 2024, more than 36,000 migrants and 680 boats successfully reached the UK, up from approximately 28, 000 migrants and 580 boats during the same period in 2023.

The number of lives lost has also risen with 78 deaths at sea were recorded in 2024, compared to 12 in 2023.

So far in 2025, 4,684 migrants have successfully reached the UK, with around 2,000 of those arriving in the past three weeks.

Explore more

So far in 2025, 4,684 migrants have successfully reached the UK. Nick Donaldson / The National

Investigation: Hunting trafficking's big boss inside Kurdistan's smuggling hotspot

Underground: Kurdish trafficker sending migrants to Europe in hiding after crackdown

Podcast: Are UK crackdowns deterring Iraqi Kurdish smugglers?