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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
National

Two suspected people smugglers arrested in Slough as part of modern slavery investigation

Two men suspected of smuggling people into the UK have been arrested in Berkshire.

The men, who are Afghan nationals with UK residency and aged 23 and 21, were arrested on Saturday near a retail park in Slough, in the company of two Afghan illegal immigrants, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said.

All four were arrested as part of an NCA investigation into modern slavery and organised immigration crime.

They were taken into custody for questioning and two house searches are under way in Edgware, north London, the NCA said.

Andrea Wilson, regional head of investigations at the NCA, said: "These arrests were made as part of an intelligence-led operation with a rapid response by my officers.

"Working with partners at home and abroad we do all we can to disrupt and dismantle organised crime networks involved in illegal immigration.

"Criminal people-smuggling gangs don’t care about the people they transport, it’s an international business and they only care about getting as rich as possible no matter the human cost.

"This investigation is in its early stages and our work continues."

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