TWO people have been charged by the Home Office Immigration Enforcement officers investigating a suspected people smuggling gang.
Three people from Southend have been bailed pending further enquiries.
They were among eighteen people arrested following a major pan-European operation, targeting suspected people-smuggling gangs.
Around 120 immigration and police officers from Home Office Immigration Enforcement and Kent Police carried out simultaneous raids on addresses in London, Luton and Essex. Eleven people were arrested on suspicion of conspiring to facilitate illegal immigration and seven others were arrested in France.
Those arrested are suspected of being part of an alleged criminal network believed to assist Sri Lankan illegal immigrants attempting to reach the UK by smuggling them in vehicles through the Channel ports. Some would also travel onwards from the UK to North America using falsified documents. It is believed clients could be charged around £4,500 to reach the UK from France.
Two women aged 24 and 29, and a 31-year-old man were arrested at address in Salisbury Avenue, and have been bailed pending further enquiries.
Rob Allen, Assistant Director for Immigration Enforcement Criminal and Financial Investigations, said: “People smuggling is an international crime which requires international co-operation, and the arrests made today show that co-operation is yielding results.
“We believe this operation will have a significant impact on an organised network we suspect has been a major player in terms of bringing Sri Lankan nationals to the UK illegally. The arrests were the culmination of a joint investigation involving Home Office Immigration Enforcement investigators, Kent Police, the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA), Europol and French and German law enforcement agencies."
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