A convicted people smuggler once described as “the godfather” of the French migrant camps is living and working in Leicestershire while seeking asylum, a BBC investigation has revealed.
Twana Jamal was given a five-year jail sentence in France in 2016. Following a tip-off this year, the BBC traced Jamal to Blaby in Leicestershire, where he was witnessed working illegally, driving a car without a licence and apparently using a false name.
“BBC finds convicted people smuggler Twana Jamal living in Leicestershire seeking asylum and working illegally.”
Law enforcement officials in mainland Europe have told the BBC that 15 other convicted people smugglers are now living in the UK under false names, raising serious concerns about whether existing border controls are effective in checking asylum seekers who have committed serious crimes overseas.
The Home Office told the BBC: “All asylum claimants are subject to mandatory security checks to confirm their identity for the purpose of immigration, security and criminality checks”, and that the UK has “a number of agreements with countries which enable the sharing of criminal record information”, adding that immigration enforcement action is currently at its highest level in history.
The full story is available on BBC Sounds under the title ‘To Catch a King’.