People smuggling

Ruthless people smuggling gangs are using refrigerated lorries and unguarded private airstrips to bring illegal immigrants into the UK, police warn

Ruthles gangs are using refrigerated lorries to smuggle migrants into the UK, the National Crime Agency has warned.

Organised networks are cashing in on those desperate to get into the country by any means, the NCA said in a report.

Investigators at the 'British FBI' said gangs are making millions from the closure of migrant camps at Calais and Dunkirk which has had little impact on the activities of 'professional' criminals.

NCA chiefs said illegal migration remains one of the most serious crime threats the UK faces, with people smugglers continuing to favour hard-sided refrigerated lorries despite the risk of suffocation and hypothermia.

Organised gangs are also illegally bringing people into the country by air under false documentation, the report warned. 

They may be taking advantage of more than 3,000 small airstrips, many of them with no security or controls.

Intelligence reveals organised crime groups have spent significant money buying or hiring aircraft.