Social media profiles containing advertisement-like video testimonials from individuals smuggled into the UK constituted part of over 8,000 accounts deactivated for endorsing the crime last year.
Among those removed by the National Crime Agency (NCA) in 2024 was an account that offered incentives to migrants for referring friends to the illicit service.
The NCA reported a 40% rise in the number of accounts eliminated from platforms such as Facebook, X, YouTube and TikTok in comparison to 2023.
This effort has elevated the total accounts removed since the agency initiated its collaboration with the four social media platforms in December 2021 to over 16,500.
The operation also focused on accounts that misleadingly claimed that the journey from France to the UK would occur via speedboat, as well as another promoting counterfeit identity documents.
Sophie Austin, operations manager at the NCA’s Online Communication Centre, stated that social media is the ‘primary avenue’ for people smugglers to advertise their illicit operations to potential migrants.
She remarked: ‘It is a significant component of their business framework.
‘Once migrants are drawn in, they transition discussions to encrypted messaging applications, where they can evade law enforcement. Eliminating these accounts disrupts the operations of these criminal syndicates.
‘We are allocating additional resources towards this initiative, as it is one of several strategies we can employ to actively confront them and complicate their endeavors.’
In November, 34-year-old Amanj Hasan Zada was sentenced to 17 years in prison after being found guilty of orchestrating small-boat crossings from his residence in Lancashire.
Investigators from the NCA uncovered videos he had posted on social media featuring individuals he had successfully smuggled, expressing gratitude for his assistance.
One such clip depicted a group of men aboard a vessel headed to Italy, showering Zada with accolades.
Based in Caerphilly, Dilshad Shamo and Ali Khdir also shared videos from individuals they had smuggled across in their social media posts.
In one segment, a family traveling by airplane is filmed saying: ‘We are really pleased… this is the visa, may God bless him, we are truly delighted.’
Shamo and Khdir admitted to charges of facilitating migrants across Europe in November and are currently awaiting sentencing.
The NCA indicated that the 40% increase from 2023, when 5,600 accounts were eradicated, is attributed to close collaboration with social media companies and ‘the enhancement of detection capabilities.’
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