A new BBC Radio 4 podcast has identified a man investigators believe is a central figure in a Kurdish network smuggling migrants into the UK.
Intrigue: To Catch a King launches today on BBC Sounds and follows journalists Rob Lawrie and Sue Mitchell as they investigate the people-smuggling routes stretching from Iraq to northern France.
During the series, the team speaks directly to a man they identify as Kardo Jaf. In a phone call, conducted through a translator while posing as potential customers, he says: “We’ve got so many different ways to get to UK. Whichever way you prefer, we get you to the UK.”
European law enforcement agencies have reportedly been trying to confirm Jaf’s identity for two years.
Detectives believe he is linked to the Ranya smuggling network, also known as the Ranya Boys, which is thought to have brought thousands of migrants to the UK in small boats and lorries.
When confronted by the BBC, including with evidence from a crossing in which four people are believed to have died, Jaf denied being a smuggler. He said he only advised people on how to leave Iraq and did not believe he had committed an offence.
The podcast also looks at how smugglers use social media to advertise their services while hiding behind aliases, making it difficult for authorities to secure arrest warrants or request international cooperation.
In the first two episodes, Rob and Sue investigate reports of ammunition being transported through Europe and supplied to smugglers operating in migrant camps near Calais. One source claims some groups have “30 to 40 guns” used to control migrants.
The series travels through France, Turkey, Iraq and the UK to explore how criminal gangs exploit gaps in cross-border enforcement.
The first two episodes are available now on BBC Sounds. The series begins on BBC Radio 4 on Wednesday 13 May at 9.30am, with new episodes released weekly.
