4 June 2025
A SUSPECTED people-smuggling gang has been arrested for allegedly facilitating hundreds of Botswana nationals into the UK illegally following strikes across the country, including Bradford. Five men and one woman were arrested in the early hours of Tuesday.
The lead suspect, a 37-year-old Botswana national, was arrested in Cheltenham on suspicion of assisting and planning the illegal entry of other migrants from Botswana into the UK. The suspected criminal gang is alleged to have facilitated the entry of more than 200 Botswana nationals into the UK illegally over a period of two years, leading them into a life of fraud and exploitation.
Once in the country, it is believed they assisted in submitting false asylum claims using fake documents to fraudulently legalise the migrants’ stay in the country, the Home Office said.
They are also believed to have assisted the migrants with illegal employment in care homes, working with the most vulnerable without adequate training or medical expertise.
The Home Office said officers acted on intelligence that suggested the lead people smuggler was exploiting the individuals he lured here under false pretences, forcing them to do unpaid work. The arrests come as part of the latest initiative under the government’s Plan for Change to crack down on the criminal gangs profiting at the expense of vulnerable individuals and restore order to the asylum system.
Security Minister Dan Jarvis said: “I want to commend the dedication and professionalism of our criminal investigators and Immigration Enforcement officers for these significant arrests.
He added: “Our enforcement teams work day and night to protect our borders and communities from harm, and this successful operation is testament to their commitment.
“The Government remains resolute in our approach to tackle illegal migration and the criminal enterprises that enable it, and through our Plan for Change will continue to restore order to the asylum system that collapsed in recent years.”
Immigration Enforcement Criminal and Financial Investigations lead Phillip Parr said: “I’m immensely proud of my team’s coordinated and targeted approach in this operation.
He added: “This operation demonstrates the power of partnership working in tackling complex organised crime.”
Source: https://rb.gy/t0bbbr
