Indian held in UK for smuggling migrants in lorries, posting trafficking ads online

A 29-year-old Indian national was arrested in Birmingham on Monday as part of a joint investigation by the UK's Crime Agency (NCA) and West Midlands Police into the advertising of people smuggling services on social media.

The man was detained at an address on Holyhead Road in the Handsworth area of Birmingham and is suspected of working on behalf of an organised crime network that transported migrants concealed in the backs of lorries. He was arrested on suspicion of facilitating illegal immigration and remains in custody, where he is being questioned by investigators.

Officers seized multiple electronic devices during the operation, which are now being examined as part of the ongoing probe. Following the raid, another man was also arrested for being in the UK illegally and was handed over to immigration authorities.

"Tackling organised immigration crime remains a priority for the NCA, and we are determined to do all we can to target, disrupt and dismantle the networks involved. Our investigation, which is being conducted alongside partners from West Midlands Police, continues following this arrest," said NCA Branch Commander Kevin Broadhead, in the agency's statement following the arrests.

The arrest comes amid a broader crackdown by the British government on illegal migration.

In May, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a major crackdown on immigration to the UK in order to end what he called an "experiment in open borders". Starmer said his approach to immigration "will finally take back control of our borders and close the book on a squalid chapter for our politics, our economy, and our country".

The UK Home Office on December 12 said that nearly 50,000 people with no legal right to remain in the country have been removed since July 2024, while arrests, convictions and seizures linked to people smuggling have risen by 33% in 2025 over last year.

British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has said reducing arrivals must be matched by stronger enforcement against those with no right to stay. Official figures released in August showed that the number of Indian nationals held in immigration detention had more than doubled over the past year, rising by 108% to 2,715 people.

Earlier this year, two Londoners, Shafaz Khan from Feltham and Choudhry Rashied from Southall, were sentenced to five years and three months in prison each for attempting to smuggle four Indian migrants into the UK. The migrants were found crammed in a hidden compartment behind a stack of dirty tyres in their van.

- Ends