Tawana Jamal was seen approaching by journalists in Leicestershire, where he now lives
An Iraqi man once described by French authorities as the “godfather of human traffickers” is now living in the UK, where he is believed to have sought asylum while working illegally, despite serving a prison sentence for running a large migrant smuggling network.Tawana Jamal was sentenced to five years in prison in France in 2016 after investigators said he earned up to £100,000 a week by organizing illegal crossings of the Channel. He charged migrants around £4,500 to take them to Britain, making him one of the most successful people smugglers they had encountered.
Living in Leicestershire after a French prison sentence
Although Jamal was expected to be deported to Iraqi Kurdistan after completing his sentence, a BBC investigation traced him to the village of Blaby in Leicestershire.
Reporters said they saw him working in a store, driving a car without a license and apparently using an alias.In a phone call arranged by a source under a false pretext, Jamal claimed he was now based in Leicester and said: “We know everyone in this city, this city is ours.”He also bragged that he was “making good money” and insisted that he was not worried about being arrested because “nobody touches us here” and “even the police won’t stop you.”
When BBC journalists later confronted him in the street, Jamal denied involvement in people smuggling. He claimed to have been living in the UK since 2009, and said he had applied for asylum but was “still waiting”. After being shown a photo of himself in a French courtroom in 2016, he replied: “I don’t care,” when asked if it proved he had been previously arrested.
During the trial, prosecutors said Jamal had been working out of the Grand Synthe camp near Dunkirk since about 2012.
His presence in Britain raised questions about how someone convicted of a serious crime abroad could seek asylum in the UK.
Under current rules, anyone sentenced to at least a year in prison abroad must normally face a mandatory rejection of their asylum claim.Downing Street said it was urgently looking into the reports.A No 10 spokeswoman said: “I am restricted in what I can say in an individual case.But we share the public’s shock at these reports, and are working urgently to establish the facts.
From the Dunkirk camps to a £100,000-a-week smuggling network
“We will not tolerate abuse of our immigration system, which is why we are deporting people who have no right to be here at the highest rate in nearly a decade.”During Jamal’s trial in France, prosecutors said he had been working out of the Grand Sinthi migrant camp near Dunkirk since around 2012. He was described as the preferred contact for migrants trying to reach Britain from camps along the French coast, and was said to have arranged for around 80 migrants a month to be transported in lorries.At first, Jamal avoided detection by hiding the migrants inside trucks carrying onions and cheese.
Those shipments were emitting carbon dioxide, making it difficult for border agents to detect people hiding inside using carbon dioxide sensors.
The investigation also revealed the suspected smuggler, Cardo Jaff
The court also heard that Cemal was known in the camps as “Pasha”, a Turkish word used for a person of high rank. He emphasized throughout the proceedings that the case was one of mistaken identity. The BBC tracked Jamal as part of a separate investigation into another suspected people smuggler, Cardo Jaff.Jaff is believed to have led an international smuggling network operating between Afghanistan and the UK. Investigators said he used the alias “Cardo Rania,” a name taken from the town of Rania in Iraqi Kurdistan, which made it difficult for police to issue an international arrest warrant because it was not his real name.The journalists said they confirmed Jaff’s true identity after his network was hacked and secretly recorded conversations that allegedly secured the passage of migrants to Britain.He was heard saying: “In France we have trucks, planes or boats, and we have many ways to get to the UK, whichever way you prefer we will get you to the UK.”Jaff denied his involvement in human smuggling, and said he was only advising people on how to leave Iraq. He insisted that he did not believe he had committed any crime.According to a 2024 report by Chatham House, Iraqi Kurdistan, where Jamal and Jaf are believed to be from, is an autonomous region “riddled with active smuggling networks.”A Home Office spokesman said: “All asylum seekers are subject to mandatory security checks to confirm their identity for immigration, security and criminal checks.”
