Two men have been sentenced to prison for smuggling migrants into the UK through a scheme involving light aircraft and secret compartments in vans. Mohammed, 32, charged £12,000 per migrant and worked with pilot Billy Hems to land migrants at remote UK airfields before transporting them in concealed van hides.
The pair operated early morning flights from the Continent, landing at quiet airstrips such as Church Farm near Banbury. Hems frequently flew between the UK and France, making suspected smuggling trips to rural airfields. Migrants were then moved further in vans specially modified with hidden compartments.
The West Midlands Regional Organised Crime Unit collaborated with the Home Office and Belgian authorities to dismantle the smuggling ring. In October 2019, Mohammed was arrested at his Symonds Yat residence after police intercepted seven Kurdish migrants, including a child, in a van bound for Belgium.
Previous evidence connected Mohammed to a Volkswagen van stopped in Dunkirk carrying migrants, and phone records linked the operation to a car wash he operated.
Both Mohammed and Hems admitted conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration, with Mohammed also pleading guilty to drug supply charges. At Worcester Crown Court, Mohammed received a sentence of seven and a half years, while Hems was sentenced to two and a half years in prison.
Detective Inspector Julie Woods stated: “Mohammed and Hems were making big money on the plight and desperation of migrants. Some were even put to work as cheap labour at Mohammed’s car wash.”
Justice Minister Tom Pursglove added: “These individuals showed blatant disregard for UK laws and have rightly paid the price. We’re cracking down on people smugglers who risk lives for profit, dismantling smuggling networks through new legislation.”
Originally published by UKNIP.
