Suspected people smuggling arrest after BBC probe

A man suspected of being part of an organised crime group that smuggled people to the UK in small boats has been arrested.

Officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) said on Thursday that they detained the 22-year-old Iranian at an address in Acocks Green in Birmingham on suspicion of conspiring to facilitate illegal immigration.

The NCA said the arrest followed a BBC investigation. That investigation had involved months of undercover fieldwork and the creation of fake identities to expose the French and UK operations of a violent smuggling gang.

The man is now in custody and due to be questioned, NCA officers said.

“People smugglers operate for profit without concern for the safety of those they transport,” said the force’s regional head of investigations, Jacque Beer.

“Our investigation continues with the evidence we have gathered today.”

As part of the BBC’s investigation, a reporter working undercover met a man at Birmingham New Street station who appeared to be prepared to take money on behalf of the people smuggling gang.

In an encounter secretly filmed at the railway station, the man appeared to be relaxed and smiling.

The BBC’s findings are the culmination of months of undercover fieldwork and the creation of multiple fake identities to engage with the smugglers.

The investigation began in April 2024 after the BBC witnessed French police trying to stop the smuggling gang from launching an inflatable boat into the Channel. In the chaos, five people were trampled to death onboard, including a 7-year-old girl named Sarah.

Minister for Border Security and Asylum Dame Angela Eagle said the government “will not stand by and let this vile trade continue, which is why we have announced the investment of a further £100 million this week to tackle the criminal networks head on”.

The NCA said it currently had 91 ongoing investigations into networks or individuals in the top tier of organised immigration crime or human trafficking.