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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Sam Russell

Two 'people smugglers' arrested in Finsbury Park raids

Two men suspected of being part of a people smuggling network have been arrested following a series of raids in Finsbury Park in north London.

The Home Office said the pair, both Albanian nationals, were arrested on Monday morning and are believed to be part of a group booking people onto UK-bound flights using fake travel documents.

The network is alleged to have booked 27 migrants onto 11 flights into UK airports, instructing them to claim asylum using their passports on arrival.

The arrests led to the discovery of Class A drugs, and one of the men was later arrested on suspicion of drugs supply.

Seven suspected members of the same criminal network were arrested last month following raids at three addresses in Finsbury Park.

It follows an investigation by the Home Office Criminal and Financial Investigations team with support from Border Force and local police forces.

Officers found evidence of fake UK biometric residence permit documents and airline tickets issued by the suspects to migrants attempting to reach the UK illegally.

The two men arrested on Monday were identified after investigating officers connected their booking details with migrants arriving on flights illegally between July 2022 and January 2023.

All of the arrested suspects have been bailed pending further investigation.

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