People smuggling gang hid immigrants behind vehicle dashboard
The driver of the vehicle in which the woman was found, Jozef Balog, pleaded guilty to assisting unlawful immigration.A month after the first woman was discovered, Border Force officers stopped the gang trying to smuggle another vulnerable woman in a secret compartment behind the dashboard of their vehicle.At a hearing in October, Emily Etherington pleaded guilty to facilitating illegal entry into the UK. She was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for two years.Her partner, Redar Curtis, admitted the same offence following a trial and was jailed for four years and six months.
The Home Office launched a wider international investigation which led to the arrest of five other gang members across the UK.Mukhlis Jamal Hamadamin was arrested at Manchester Airport in November 2023.When searched, his phone contained images of passports and boarding passes, along with messages between the gang about the creation and distribution of false documents.His younger brother, Muhamad Jamal Hamadamin, has also been jailed.Officials also found counterfeit documents, more than 20,000 illicit cigarettes and £6,000 in cash.An investigation is under way to recover the gang's illegal profits."This gang put profit over lives, cramming people into sophisticated hides and planning dangerous border crossings for the most vulnerable," said Phillip Parr, who leads the immigration enforcement, criminal and financial investigations team.Border Security and Asylum Minister Dame Angela Eagle said: "The unlawful activities of this gang is an example of the lengths people smugglers will go to for profit. "Their ruthless disregard for human safety is sickening and shocking."
The eight gang members were:Mukhlis Jamal Hamadamin, 43, of Brook Road in Stockport, was jailed for 13 yearsMuhamad Jamal Hamadamin, 28, of Brook Road in Stockport, was jailed for 18 monthsYassen Jalal Mohammed, 44, of Woodhouse Grove in Huddersfield, was sentenced to three years and two months in prisonDlawar Omar, 40, of Pendrill Street in Hull, was sentenced to three years and one monthEmily Etherington, 38, of Guernsey Way in Ashford, Kent, was sentenced to two years in prison, suspended for two yearsRedar Curtis, 30, of Guernsey Way in Kennington, London, was jailed for four years and six monthsJozef Kadet, 26, of Constable Street, Manchester, was sentenced to four years and two months in prisonKhales Akram Jabar, 44, of Barnaby Avenue, Middlesbrough, was jailed for two years
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