A man accused of being a major supplier of the boats and engines used by cross-Channel people smugglers to bring migrants to the UK has been arrested.
The Turkish national, 44, was held at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport on Wednesday and faces extradition to Belgium to face human smuggling charges, the National Crime Agency (NCA) said.
He is suspected of supplying the engines and boats used by traffickers to bring migrants across the Channel.
The equipment was shipped from Turkey and stored in Germany before being brought to northern France when needed.
NCA director general Rob Jones hailed the arrest as an “important milestone” in one of its most “significant investigations into organised immigration crime”.
“We suspect that this individual is a major supplier of boats and engines to the smugglers operating in Belgium and northern France,” he said.
“The types of vessels and engines we see used in making these crossings are highly dangerous and completely unfit for open water.
“At least 50 people are known to have died this year as a result. There is no legitimate use for them.”
More than 32,000 migrants have arrived in the UK so far this year after crossing the Channel.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the arrest as a “significant piece of the jigsaw” in tackling Channel crossings, but added: “I’m not pretending it’s the silver bullet.”
He vowed the government would “treat people smugglers like terrorists” as he announced an extra £75m for his border security command during a speech at the Interpol general assembly in Glasgow last week.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “We will relentlessly pursue the criminal smuggling gangs making millions out of small boat crossings that undermine our border security and put lives at risk.
“This major investigation shows how important it is for our crime fighting agencies to be working hand in glove with our international partners to get results.”
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The NCA said it is leading around 70 ongoing investigations into networks or people “in the top tier” of organised immigration crime or people trafficking and stressed the importance of working with its counterparts in Europe.
A spokesperson for the public prosecutor’s office of West Flanders said: “International cooperation is crucial in the fight against human smuggling, and the arrest of this suspect through close cooperation with our UK and Dutch partners demonstrates our ongoing commitment to partnership working.
“Human smuggling criminals do not respect national borders, and we will relentlessly pursue these criminals through working internationally.”
