National Crime Agency (NCA)

Members of an organised crime group that attempted to import 1.2 tonnes of cocaine into the UK with the help of a corrupt port security guard have been jailed for a total of more than 74 years following a major National Crime Agency-led operation. The operation took place at Sheerness Port in Kent in December 2021, and saw more than a hundred officers swoop on the gang as they attempted to recover the drugs from a container. The drugs, which had an estimated street value of more than £90 million, had arrived on a vessel from Costa Rica and were hidden inside a shipment of bananas. The shipment had been arranged by gang leaders Danny Laird, 41, from Buntingford in Hertfordshire, and Joel McCaughey, 34, from Manchester. However, they were unaware they had been the subject of a two-month surveillance operation by the NCA, whose officers watched as a series of meetings took place at pubs, cafes and service stations to organise the importation and recover the drugs. Six men were charged with conspiring to import class A drugs, and all pleaded guilty, while Elphick pleaded guilty to participating in the activities of an organised crime group. Today a judge at Maidstone Crown Court sentenced Turner to 11 years; Laurie to 12 years and four months; Davidson to 10 years; Woodward to 11 years and three months; Laird to 14 years and eight months and McCaughey to 13 years and four months. The NCA is committed to working with partners to break the supply chains behind the drug trade and dismantle the organised crime groups involved. Full story ➡️ https://lnkd.in/ed-_EZxu

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WARNING: This story contains references to child sexual abuse. A man from Exeter who distributed videos of himself sexually assaulting a young girl online has been jailed for 25 years. NCA investigators arrested Woody Spencer at his home earlier this year after receiving information from the Australian Federal Police relating to a video posted online of child sexual abuse. Despite attempts to conceal his identity in the video, experts from the NCA’s victim identification team were able to identify him and he was arrested. Spencer’s phone was found to contain 163 indecent images of children. Additional evidence was identified relating to voyeurism offences against an 18-year-old woman, who Spencer had covertly recorded without permission whilst she was in the shower. He was found guilty of numerous offences at Exeter Crown Court including assault of a child under 13 by penetration. He pleaded guilty to the voyeurism offence at an earlier hearing. Spencer was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment and placed on the sex offenders register for life at the same court today. Tackling the global threat of online child sexual abuse is a priority for the NCA and our partners. We will continue to protect the victims of these crimes and prevent offenders like Spencer from causing harm. FULL STORY ➡️ https://lnkd.in/ewXWrDvZ

📺 Watch the story of people smugglers Dilshad Shamo and Ali Khdir in Undercover People Smugglers on BBC iPlayer. The NCA’s Derek Evans provided an exclusive interview on how our officers painstakingly pieced together the duo's movements, using tactics including surveillance, to prove their crimes. Catch up now ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eJS4vKJ3

NCA officers have arrested one of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)'s most wanted fugitives in Wales. Daniel Andreas San Diego was detained in an operation supported by Counter Terrorism Policing and North Wales Police yesterday and now faces extradition to the US to face charges.

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Two men who ran a people smuggling ring from Caerphilly to move thousands of migrants across Europe have been convicted following a NCA investigation. On the surface, Dilshad Shamo and Ali Khdir appeared to be running a successful car wash franchise. However, they were actually under surveillance by NCA investigators who had uncovered their roles in a huge people smuggling ring. The investigation was supported by Gwent Police. Shamo and Khdir were working as part of a larger OCG to facilitate the movement of migrants from Iraq, Iran and Syria. Many of them are suspected of arriving in the UK. Migrants were offered three tiers of service – via vehicle, cargo ships or yachts, and the top tier by plane. They also used messaging and social media apps to provide videos from people who had already taken the journey so they could advertise their routes. After hearing ten days of evidence against them, both pleaded guilty to all offences today (22 November). A further hearing will be held on Monday ahead of sentencing. Our evidence showed migrants moving under Khdir and Shamo made it to EU countries and we assess their journeys have and would have continued into the UK. Tackling organised immigration crime is a top priority for the NCA and we will continue to do all we can to bring those involved in people smuggling networks to justice. Read the full story ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eyAVM39f

A man suspected of being involved in a people smuggling organised crime group bringing people from France and Belgium has been brought back to the UK after absconding. NCA officers arrested Arsen Feci, 46, from Broxtowe Street, Nottingham, on his return to Heathrow airport on Wednesday. Feci had been arrested in Spain in August 2024 having fled Britain in March 2023 when he was bailed by the courts ahead of his trial. He appeared before Nottingham Crown Court yesterday morning charged with assisting unlawful immigration to the UK. NCA investigators believe Feci was involved in buying equipment and sourcing people to 'staff' crossings from France and Belgium to the UK. The NCA has global reach and we will continue to work closely with our international partners to bring those who try to evade justice back to the UK to face the courts. Full story ➡️ https://lnkd.in/ezvfyvFn

Five people have been arrested and charged as part of an ongoing National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation into migrant smuggling from the UK to France in lorries. NCA officers descended on properties across London on the morning of 20 November to arrest the men, aged 43 to 54, who are all thought to be Algerian and Egyptian nationals. One of those arrested is suspected of being high-ranking member of the people smuggling crime network. The other four are accused of transporting migrants in cars and vans to be loaded into lorries. The arrests were made after more than 200 North African migrants, including children, were discovered in lorry trailers travelling from the UK to France on separate occasions in 2023. Twenty people have been arrested as part of the investigation to date, including five men who have since been convicted and jailed for transporting migrants. People leaving the UK in lorries may be doing so because they are wanted by law enforcement, they may be trying to dodge French immigration checks, or they may be being trafficked or exploited. People smugglers don't care about the safety or wellbeing of human beings they transport. They're driven solely by profits. The same crime groups smuggling people out of the country are often engaged in bringing people in, so operations like this allow us to target their UK footprint. Read the full story ➡️ https://lnkd.in/esx2MhFb

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