0h 5min, apr 10, 2026 y - Migrant Smugglers Jailed

Description:

Two men who ran a huge people-smuggling operation from a car wash have been sentenced to 19 years each in prison.

Dilshad Shamo, 41, and Ali Khdir, 40, organised the smuggling of about 100 migrants to Europe weekly for two years, labelled a "Tripadvisor for people smugglers" by the National Crime Agency.

They worked from an otherwise legitimate car wash business in Caerphilly, south Wales, and financed the scheme using a Middle Eastern money-transfer system called Hawala banking.

After previously pleading guilty partway through a trial, they appeared at Cardiff Crown Court for sentencing, with a judge describing them as "having leading roles in a sophisticated and successful" operation.

Shamo and Khdir were both originally from Iraqi Kurdistan but were living and working legally in the UK.

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