- The National Crime Agency (NCA) reported a significant 55 per cent surge in people smuggling-related arrests, reaching 300 within the UK and overseas in the year leading up to April 2026, compared to 190 in the preceding year.
- This increase is attributed to an expansion of resources, including a greater number of officers dedicated to tackling organised immigration crime, with the NCA actively targeting criminal networks both within Europe and in locations such as Iraq and Libya.
- During the 2025 to 2026 period, 59 individuals were convicted of organised immigration crime offences in UK courts following NCA investigations, including Ahmed Ebid, jailed for 25 years for a £12 million illegal boat crossing operation, and Adem Savas, sentenced to 11 years for supplying equipment for Channel crossings.
- Recent operational successes include the arrest of six individuals after a lorry containing 23 people was stopped at Dover port, and four arrests in Germany as part of an operation targeting networks supplying equipment to small boat gangs.
- The NCA's broader efforts in 2025 included leading 400 disruptions against organised immigration crime networks, seizing over 500 boats and engines with international authorities, and collaborating with social media platforms to remove more than 10,000 accounts or posts linked to such criminal activity.
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National Crime Agency reports a sharp 55% rise in people smuggling arrests
