LONDON: Three Afghan men convicted in Belgium over their involvement in a major people smuggling ring have been arrested in the UK, investigators said on Monday.
A court in the Belgian city of Antwerp last month convicted the trio, who were tried in their absence, and 20 other members of the gang to a total of 170 years in jail with sentences ranging from two to 18 years.
Ziarmal Khan, 24, Zeeshan Banghis 20, and Saifur Rahman Ahmedzai, 23 were arrested between December 6 and Monday in London and surrounding areas, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said.
Prosecutors in Belgium said the gang organized migrants’ journeys from Afghanistan through Iran, Turkiye and the Balkans to Europe, mainly France and Belgium.
Many would then be put on small boats for the perilous sea crossing of the Channel between northern France and England’s south coast.
The gang also subjected male migrant minors to serious sexual assaults including rape which they would video to blackmail the victims.
The three men were among 11 defendants who were tried in their absence following a joint investigation by the NCA and Belgian police.
Ahmedzai was sentenced to 10 years while Khan and Banghis each received three years. All three were fined 3,000 euros ($3,100).
NCA deputy director Craig Turner said they were part of a network “profiting from the dangerous situations they put vulnerable people into as they were transported, and committing the most heinous sexual offenses against them.”
The three men are now due to be returned to Belgium to serve their sentences with extradition proceedings already commenced, the NCA added.
Britain’s Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the government was committed to tackling people smuggling gangs.
“In recent weeks we’ve agreed landmark new deals with Iraq and Germany, pledging mutual support and cooperation to tackle this shared challenge,” she said.
Migration was a major issue at the UK’s July general election that brought British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his Labour Party to power.
Over 37,100 people have made the Channel crossing in 2024, with the death toll for the year standing at 76.