An Iraqi national has been arrested in a major operation to smash an international people smuggling ring.
National Crime Agency officers have now charged the 31-year-old man after he was detained by officers in Wolverhampton.
Ramal Briem is suspected of being involved in a wider network of organised people smugglers operating in the UK.
He was detained at a property in Crawford Road, Wolverhampton, on suspicion of facilitating illegal immigration.
Four other suspected members of that people smuggling ring were arrested by the National Crime Agency in April.
NCA
He is alleged to have been involved in a smuggling event in March 2024 which saw six people transported to Burton-upon-Trent in Staffordshire in the back of a lorry.
Investigators have told GB News they are also linking him to an organised crime group involved in small boat crossings.
Four other suspected members of that people smuggling ring were arrested by the National Crime Agency in April.
Three were later charged, while a fourth is undergoing extradition proceedings as he is wanted in France.
NCA officers arrested a 23-year-old woman at an address in Heathfield Road, Croydon and a 64-year-old man at a house in Abinger Grove, London. A man aged 34 was arrested in Grasmere Street, Leicester.
The fourth person, a 25-year-old man, was also arrested at the address in Croydon on a warrant issued by the French authorities, who allege he was involved in people smuggling and drug offences.
NCA officers arrested a 23-year-old woman at an address in Heathfield Road, Croydon
NCA
Investigators allege the four, all Vietnamese nationals, were involved in advertising illegal immigration into the UK in social media posts aimed at the Vietnamese community, charging migrants thousands of pounds to make the crossing.
In France, another 12 people were arrested in the Paris area, suspected of being linked to the same people smuggling network.
Ramal Briem was charged with facilitating illegal immigration when he appeared at Wolverhampton magistrates court today.
The National Crime Agency’s senior investigating officer Saju Sasikumar said: “This arrest is part of an ongoing investigation into organised immigration crime.
“People smugglers operate for profit without concern for the safety of those they transport, whether that be in the backs of lorries or in small boats.
“This is why dismantling and disrupting the networks involved remains a priority for the NCA.”
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has made smashing the people smuggling gangs a key priority for his new Government.
Millions of pounds of extra investment is being provided for the Government’s new Border Security Command.
Hundreds of additional investigators will also be deployed to the Command, which brings together the National Crime Agency, Immigration Enforcement, police and the security services.