German authorities arrest gang ringleaders in major Channel smuggling crackdown
Police have thwarted a German gang’s plan to help smuggle at least 1,000 migrants across the Channel in the first raid since the country closed a legal loophole.
Approximately 450 officers carried out the raids at 12 locations in six cities across northern Germany. Four of the gang’s ringleaders were arrested.
The gang supplied “go kits” consisting of dinghies, pumps, and engines, each valued at more than €10,000 (£8,650) on the black market.
These kits were stored in Germany and were available for purchase by people-smuggling gangs before being shipped to the north coast of France for migrant crossings over the Channel.
In an investigation led by the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Belgian police, officers had previously intercepted and seized 16 small-boat “go kits” before Wednesday’s raids in Germany. They arrested 17 suspected people smugglers.
The 16 small boats could have transported at least 1,000 migrants across the Channel, yielding the gang at least €1.6m (£1.4m).
This is the first large-scale operation since the German government passed a new law that criminalizes facilitating the smuggling of migrants to Britain.
Under previous German law, it was not an offense for migrants to be smuggled through Germany to a non-EU nation, which Britain is now post-Brexit.
Nor was it illegal for boats, destined to cross the Channel, to be stored in Germany before being relocated to the French coast. This storage will now be considered a criminal offense.
In February 2024, nearly 1,000 police officers conducted dawn raids across Germany, targeting an Iraqi-Kurdish network of people smugglers.
Craig Turner, the NCA deputy director of investigations, stated: “We believe this operation has successfully disrupted and dismantled a significant organized crime group supplying equipment to people smugglers operating in the Channel."
"These vessels are completely unsuitable for their intended use, carrying 70 or more people with a severely under-powered engine."
"The fact that they are being sent into the open sea in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes shows the complete disregard these criminal networks have for the safety of those they transport. This operation will have dealt a significant blow to their business model and supply lines.”
Alex Norris, the border security minister, said: “By targeting vile smugglers before boats even reach the water, we are hitting these gangs where it hurts most – their business model."
“Through closer cooperation across Europe, we are achieving record-high arrests, seizures, and convictions. We will stop at nothing to restore order and control to our borders.”
The investigation commenced after the NCA received intelligence regarding a suspicious shipment of tyre inner tubes being sent to Italy in March last year.
The inner tubes – often supplied by people smugglers to migrants on Channel boats instead of life jackets – were subsequently moved to multiple storage sites managed by the gang in Germany. There, they would be combined with inflatable boats, pumps, and engines to form the “go kits.”
Wednesday’s raids in the northern Rhine-Westphalia region of Germany resulted in the seizure of boats and engines, as well as petrol cans, pumps, and life jackets, as officers searched several suspected storage warehouses linked to the gang.
Residential properties were also inspected.
The four suspected ringleaders arrested are likely to be extradited to Belgium to face trial.
Technology & Business Editor
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