Jaskirat Singh imprisoned in the United Kingdom for 5 years/Photo: BBC
An Indian man has been sentenced to more than five years in prison after he admitted his role in a smuggling network that transported migrants from the UK to France hidden inside trucks.
The BBC reported that Jaskirat Singh, 25, from Wolverhampton, was sentenced by Canterbury Crown Court after pleading guilty to conspiracy to assist illegal immigration.The court heard that Singh played a central role in coordinating cross-Channel smuggling trips, arranging transport and logistics for migrants hidden inside heavy goods vehicles traveling to France.Evidence obtained from cellphones links Singh to the operation, including messages organizing trips, videos showing large sums of cash and a TikTok account that appears to be advertising the crossings.Prosecutors also relied on an audio message in which Singh claimed he had been involved in the smuggling network for four years and helped send about 60 people a week to France over a period of nine months.Judge Alison Russell said the operation appeared to have involved groups of up to 15 people hiding inside trucks before being transported across the Channel. She told the court that Singh acted as a coordinator and logistical manager within the network, and that the offense was carried out for significant financial gain.
The court heard that investigators believe Singh earned more than £185,000 through the scheme.Sentencing him, Judge Russell said the migrants were transported in unsafe and overcrowded conditions, exposing them to serious risks. She added that there may also have been children among those transported during the operation.The smuggling plot was uncovered after 11 Indian nationals were discovered hiding inside a truck trailer parked in Dover in December 2024.
Investigators later linked Singh to that incident and another attempted crossing, which led officers to his address in Wolverhampton.Peter Cockerill, District Attorney for the South East Crown Prosecution Service, said Singh played a key role in a criminal enterprise that put vulnerable people at risk.“Jaskirat Singh was a significant participant in an organized immigration crime operation, exposing individuals to serious risk for financial gain,” he added.Defense lawyer Talbir Singh KC told the court that Singh moved to the UK at the age of 18 after his family moved from India to Italy and he was working legally in the country. He said that Singh was not the mastermind behind the operation and that he acted under the supervision of others involved in the conspiracy.The Public Prosecution said it will now seek a confiscation order to recover the money believed to have been obtained from the smuggling operation.