Two men have been jailed for 19 years each for their roles in a people smuggling ring moving migrants across Europe after a National Crime Agency investigation.
Dilshad Shamo, 43, and Ali Khdir, 42, were under surveillance from the National Crime Agency for months as their roles in a multi-national people smuggling ring were uncovered in 2023.
Shamo and Khdir, as part of a larger organised crime group, were facilitating the movement of migrants from Iraq, Iran and Syria through Belarus, Moldova and Bosnia and ending in Italy, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Germany and France.
Migrants were offered three tiers of service – the simplest being on foot or via HGV or smaller vehicle, the next by cargo ships or yachts, and the top tier by providing plane travel.
Money was lodged with Hawala bankers based in Iraq and Istanbul who would arrange and obtain funds from migrants travelling on particular routes.
Shamo and Khdir used Whatsapp to communicate with people smugglers across Europe. Once a deposit was obtained, they would receive an 'OK' for migrants to be moved by a specified route or timeframe.
Other messaging and social media apps were used to advertise their routes and services with videos of families who were travelling via plane, on boats or in the back of HGVs.
Shamo and Khdir were arrested in April 2023 and charged with facilitating migrants through Europe. The NCA investigation was supported by Gwent police. Both were convicted after pleading guilty part way through their trial in November. They were sentenced to 19 years' imprisonment each today (10 April) following a Newton hearing.
NCA Branch Commander Derek Evans said: "Our long-running investigation showed Khdir and Shamo were working around the clock to orchestrate the movement of migrants across Europe. We believe they smuggled more than 400 people in a period of just six months.
"While on the surface they portrayed themselves as successful businessmen running a car wash from Caerphilly, they were actually leading an entirely separate life as part of a criminal network.
"The NCA will continue in our work to tackle organised immigration crime and bring criminals involved at every step of the route to justice."
Kate Hurst from the Crown Prosecution Service said: "We didn't accept the basis on which Ali Khdir and Dilshad Shamo admitted their guilt because they tried to minimise their leading role in seeking to bring hundreds of migrants illegally into Europe.
"The court accepted our evidence and has handed down sentences that they both deserve.
"This prosecution couldn't have been possible without the hard work of officers from the National Crime Agency and international cooperation from our overseas partners.
"Only by working together and sharing information in this way can we disrupt and defeat organised immigration gangs."
