Prolific people traffickers smuggled hundreds of migrants from Middle East across Europe

Two men allegedly ran operation from a car wash in Wales

Fast Track Hand Car Wash in Caerphilly, Wales. Photo: Google

Two men are alleged to have smuggled hundreds of migrants from the Middle East and through Europe by hiding them in boats, lorries and cars in an operation run from a car wash in Wales. As part of an organised people-smuggling cartel, Dilshad Shamo, 41, and Ali Khdir, 42, moved migrants from Iraq, Iran and Syria through the EU to Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Croatia, Austria, Germany and France.

Following an investigation into the Fast Track Hand Car Wash run by the men in Caerphilly, South Wales, the National Crime Agency arrested the pair in April last year. It had gathered evidence from WhatsApp, including voice messages between the defendants and people based in Iraq, Turkey and Europe attempting to smuggle people across the EU.

Most of the immigrants trafficked came from Iraq, Iran and Syria, and were charged money “equating to several thousands of pounds”, she said. "This case involves the trafficking of people or as it's referred to in this case as people-smuggling, predominantly of migrants from Iran, Iraq and Syria,” prosecutor Sarah Gaunt said at a court hearing on Monday.

"Migrants often paid several thousand pounds to be trafficked across Europe by various organised routes. It is the prosecution’s case that this evidence shows various agreements, to traffic, or attempt to traffic, individuals from non-European Union countries into and across the EU for monetary gain. This was in breach of the immigration laws that existed in those countries."