'Key figures' in people smuggling network arrested

Five men have been arrested as part of an investigation into a people smuggling network suspected of transporting Vietnamese migrants to the UK in lorries and small boats.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) said the men were believed to be "key figures" in an "organised crime group smuggling people from France to the UK since the summer of 2024".

An NCA spokesperson said one of the men, aged 22, had been arrested at an address in Rawmarsh, Rotherham on Tuesday.

Three other men aged 27, 31 and 33, currently on remand in a prison in Liverpool, and a 31-year-old man on remand in a prison in Birmingham, were also re-arrested as part of the investigation.

The NCA said the four men who had been re-arrested were currently on remand having been charged with money laundering and ID document offences last year.

All five men are suspected of holding the genuine Vietnamese passports of those they transported to enforce debt bondage, a spokesperson added.

NCA branch commander Jon Hughes, said: "Tackling people smuggling remains a top priority for the NCA, and this is one of approximately 100 ongoing investigations targeting groups or individuals both directly involved in organising journeys, or those who facilitate that criminality."

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