British investigators help arrest human trafficking suspects in Iraq for the first time

British investigators were involved in the arrest of suspected human traffickers in Iraq for the first time.

National Crime Agency (NCA) staff informed local security officers before they raided three men suspected of trafficking up to 1,000 migrants from the Kurdish region Iraq.

The suspects are believed to be related UK-based people smuggler Amanj Hassan Zadafrom Preston, Lancashirewho was sentenced to 17 years in prison in November.

Rob Jones, the national competition authority’s chief operating officer, said: “This is extremely important to us as it follows on from an operation in the UK where we arrested Zada.

“This man was blatantly advertising Channel crossings as being extremely dangerous.”

The agency followed “a trail of evidence … this person led us all the way to Iraq,” he said.

“It is critical now, as we have said repeatedly, that we crack down on these perpetrators abroad and expand our reach to deal with them,” Jones said. “So this is global organized crime, and we have shown that wherever you are, we can reach you and, together with our partners, take care of you.”

The three suspects, held for the past few days, are expected to face trial in KRI, the autonomous area of northern Iraq from where the gang is believed to have operated.

One of those arrested is accused of being a money trader who used the informal Hawala banking system – an anonymous and untraceable method of transferring money popular in Islamic countries.

Another suspect, 38, is accused of coordinating the movement of more than a dozen yachts to transport migrants to Greece or Italy in the first part of a journey that eventually took them – in much riskier boats – to Northern Europe or Britain.

The third suspect is accused of organizing migrants into groups ready to travel.

Zada advertised his gang’s services on social media, sometimes using videos of those he smuggled as references.

In one video he was filmed firing a gun into the air at a party and was praised in a Kurdish song as “the best smuggler.”

NCA Squad Commander Martin Clarke, who was part of the team that flew to KRI to assist in the arrest operation, said: “The NCA was able to follow the lead of this network from Amanja Hasan Zada at his home in Preston straight to the streets of Sulaymaniyah, where we believe this gang operated and recruited.

“We had fantastic cooperation with Asayish agencies in both Erbil and Sulaymaniyah during this investigation.

“Like us, they realize that these gangs are risking the lives of those being transported by feeding them lies through social media channels and claiming that travel is 100% safe.”

In an attempt to stem the flow of migrants risking their lives trying to reach the UK, the Government wants the relevant national authority and other agencies to target and dismantle criminal groups who profit from desperate travelers by charging them huge sums of money and cramming them into flimsy little boats.

Last year, more than 30,000 people crossed the canal in small boats from northern Europe. The government says it has turned back thousands of illegal immigrants since its elections in July.

The Labor government and its Conservative predecessor have increased funding for relevant national authorities to step up their actions against human traffickers.

Last year, the agency arrested 227 suspects and is currently investigating 70 people smuggling rings.