Man Jailed in France for Smuggling Illegal Migrants Across the Channel Is Now in the UK Applying for Something That Has Shocked Many

An Iraqi man once described by investigators as the “Godfather of traffickers” has reportedly been found living in the UK and is believed to be claiming asylum while also working illegally.

Twana Jamal was jailed in France in 2016 after being convicted of running a large people-smuggling operation that brought migrants across the English Channel into Britain. French authorities said he earned as much as £100,000 a week by charging migrants around £4,500 each to arrange their journey to the UK. At the time, investigators described him as one of the most successful people smugglers they had ever arrested.

After serving a five-year prison sentence in France, Jamal was expected to be deported to Iraqi Kurdistan. However, a recent BBC investigation claims he is now living in the village of Blaby, near Leicester, in England.

According to the investigation, reporters saw him working in a local shop, driving despite allegedly not having a valid licence, and reportedly using a different name. During a phone call arranged by undercover journalists, the man believed to be Jamal allegedly said he was now based in Leicester and claimed that he knew many people in the city. He also reportedly said he was making good money and suggested that he was not worried about being stopped by the authorities.

When BBC reporters later confronted him in person, Jamal denied ever being involved in people smuggling. He claimed he had been living in the UK since 2009 and said he had applied for asylum and was still waiting for a decision on his case.

When journalists showed him a photograph of himself in a French courtroom during his 2016 trial, he reportedly dismissed it and said he did not care. He also maintained that his previous conviction was a case of mistaken identity.

His reported presence in the UK has raised fresh questions about the asylum system. Under UK immigration rules, people who have been sentenced to at least one year in prison overseas can face mandatory refusal of an asylum claim, although each case is assessed individually based on the law and available evidence.

During his trial in France, prosecutors said Jamal had been operating from the Grand-Synthe migrant camp near Dunkirk from around 2012. They claimed he became one of the main organisers helping migrants reach Britain from camps along the French coast, arranging the movement of dozens of migrants every month.

The court heard that he initially avoided detection by hiding migrants inside trucks carrying onions and cheese. Investigators said those food products produced carbon dioxide, making it harder for detection equipment to identify people hidden inside the vehicles. Prosecutors also said he was known in the camps by the nickname “Pasha,” a title used to describe someone of high status or authority.

The BBC investigation also led to the arrest of another suspected people smuggler, Kardo Jaf, who is accused of leading an international smuggling network stretching from Afghanistan to the UK. Investigators said he used the alias “Kardo Ranya,” making it more difficult for police to identify him and issue an international arrest warrant.

Secret recordings reportedly captured Jaf offering several routes into Britain, including by truck, boat, or plane. However, he denied being a people smuggler and insisted that he had only advised people on how to leave Iraq. He also said he did not believe he had committed any crime.

Both Jamal and Jaf are believed to come from Iraqi Kurdistan, an autonomous region that has previously been identified by researchers as having active migrant smuggling networks.

Responding to the investigation, a Home Office spokesperson said that all asylum applicants are subject to mandatory security and identity checks, including checks relating to criminal history and national security, before decisions are made on their claims.