Human Smuggling Gang Faces Jail After Vietnamese Woman Found in Glovebox
Eight gang members are set for prison after a Vietnamese woman was discovered hidden in a car’s glovebox at the UK border
Vietnamese Woman, UK, Human Smuggling, Organised Crime, Manchester
Manchester: A shocking incident unfolded when border officials found a Vietnamese woman stuffed inside a car’s glovebox. This discovery led to the unraveling of a human smuggling operation involving eight gang members.
The gang had been active between 2022 and 2024, sneaking people into the UK through various means, including fake documents made in Greece. Their illegal activities came to light thanks to an investigation by the Home Office.
In June 2022, Jozef Balong was stopped at the UK border after arriving from France. When officers searched his car, they found the woman hidden behind the dashboard. It was a tight squeeze, to say the least.
Balong admitted to helping with unlawful immigration and got a two-and-a-half-year sentence in January 2024. Just a month later, another gang member, Emily Etherington, was caught hiding a woman in her car’s dashboard too. Her husband, Redar Curtis, was also implicated.
The Home Office’s investigation revealed a complex network of people smuggling and document forgery. They executed several search warrants across the UK, seizing counterfeit documents, over 20,000 illegal cigarettes, and £6,000 in cash.
A spokesperson from the Home Office said the gang used various methods to smuggle migrants, often putting them in dangerous spots in modified vehicles. They also produced fake identity documents to help non-EU nationals travel into the UK.
In November 2023, officers arrested Mukhlis Jamal Hamadamin at Manchester Airport. They found a parcel from Greece containing a fake driving license linked to him. His phone revealed a treasure trove of evidence, including images of passports and messages about creating fake documents.
Five gang members pleaded guilty, while three faced trial at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court. The brothers Mukhlis and Muhamad Jamal Hamadamin, along with others, admitted their roles. The trial lasted ten weeks, and the guilty ones are set to be sentenced on January 29.
Dame Angela Eagle, the Minister for Border Security, emphasized the gang’s ruthless tactics and the dangers they posed to vulnerable individuals. She praised the investigators for their hard work in dismantling the operation.
Chief Immigration Officer Paul Moran highlighted the extensive collaboration with international police to break up this criminal group, which prioritized profit over people’s safety. The investigation took over two years and involved multiple law enforcement agencies.