Over 2,500 people have been arrested by police in 116 countries, led by Interpol, as part of a huge effort to stop people smuggling. Operation Liberterra II was a global operation that went after people smuggling rings that take people across borders and often put them in dangerous and exploitative situations.
As part of this operation, nine men have been arrested in the UK. Officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) have carried out arrest warrants in London, Kent, Greater Manchester, and West Yorkshire, among other places. One person arrested was 27 years old and was in Wandsworth, London. Another was 52 years old and was in Kent.
A 32-year-old Syrian man being housed in Nottingham was among the most significant arrests. He is sought in Romania on allegations he assisted in getting Bulgarian citizens from Bulgaria to Romania so they might proceed to the Netherlands. The other eight men detained in the UK are accused of crimes in France, Germany, Belgium, and Romania pertaining to modern slavery, trafficking, and person smuggling.
This operation also stopped 27 migrants trying to get to the UK in Tunisia. Of these, 21 were children. The fact that they were caught shows how dangerous it is for migrants to try to get into Europe, where they are often dependent on dangerous smuggling networks.
Rick Jones, NCA’s deputy director of international operations, said that the operation shows that they are ready to work with other international agencies to stop people smuggling. According to what he said, the NCA used advanced intelligence-sharing tools to find and arrest criminals with the help of Interpol and local police.
Interpol sent an international liaison officer to its coordination unit in Skopje, North Macedonia, to make it easier for agencies from around the world to share information and work together on the operation.
Operation Liberterra II’s success marks a significant step towards disintegrating intricate drug networks. Currently for all nine suspects, extradite processes are under way in the UK. This guarantees their facing of justice in the nations where they are sought for.
The NCA is still combating human trafficking and smuggling by means of worldwide partners. Their aim is to bring offenders to justice and protect weaker individuals from these threatening systems.