Charan Singh and his gang received jail sentences totalling more than 70 years in London. The Indian origin gang leader and his teammates were involved in a bunch of criminal activities that ranged from money laundering to human trafficking.
According to the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) Charan Singh’s gang had smuggled around GBP 70 million in cash out of the UK between 2017-19 to Dubai.
Source of money, as per the agency, could be from the sales of Class A illegal drugs and immigration crimes.
The investigators, during the operation, found the plot to smuggle 17 migrants in a van carrying tyres in 2019. But the van was caught by the Dutch police before it could reach a ferry at the Hook of Holland.
Charan Singh received the maximum sentence of 12 and a half years followed by Valjeet Singh who got 11 years and Sawander Singh Dhal with 10 years in jail. The rest got sentences ranging from 9 years and 11 months.
Human trafficking has been a serious issue to tackle not only in the UK but globally. According to a report from NCA, in 2022, there were a total 7936 referrals made for potential victims of exploitation in the UK. It was an increase of 10.3 percent from last year.
