'SMASH THE GANGS' 'number one target' jailed for supplying thousands of boats to Channel people smugglers

A man who supplied thousands of boats and engines to people smugglers operating in the English Channel has been jailed, following a joint operation involving the National Crime Agency and Belgian authorities.

Turkish national Adem Savas, 45, (above) admitted offences of people smuggling and being a member of an organised crime group on 3 December following a hearing at a court in Bruges. The same court today sentenced him to 11 years in prison, and a fine of 400,000 euros. Three co-defendants were given sentences totalling 38 years.

Savas had been detained at Schipol Airport in Amsterdam on 13 November 2024, before being extradited to Belgium to face charges.

He was initially identified by the NCA following an investigation into Kurdish crime boss Hewa Rahimpur, 32, originally from Iran.

Rahimpur headed up a major Europe-wide smuggling ring thought to be behind the movement of more than 10,000 migrants in small boat crossings to the UK, transporting migrants and equipment through Belgium on the way. He was arrested in 2022 by the NCA near Ilford, east London, where he was living at the time.

He was extradited to Belgium, where he was convicted and jailed for 11 years in October 2023. This was later increased to 13 years on appeal. Other members of his network were also subsequently convicted in France and the UK following investigations also involving the NCA.

Analysis of phones and devices seized following Rahimpur’s arrest revealed that his key supplier of boats and engines was Savas, and the two were in regular contact.

At the time, Savas was the main importer of cheap ‘Parsun’ branded outboard engines sourced from China, the type most frequently used by gangs operating small boats in the Channel.

The NCA, working with Belgian counterparts, evidenced how boats and engines sourced by Savas were moved overland from Turkey into Bulgaria, and then across Europe to Germany where they would be stored before being used in the Channel.

To move them he engaged the services of a haulage firm based in the Netherlands. After this firm was identified by the NCA, Dutch police began an investigation which later led to convictions for money laundering and drug trafficking.

Operating from 2019 until his arrest in 2024, and working with people smuggling networks in Belgium and France, Savas is assessed by the NCA to have supplied equipment used in thousands of small boat crossings to the UK.

Charging on average around £4,000 for packages of boats and engines, he is likely to have made millions over the time of his offending.

NCA investigators believe that in 2023 Savas will have supplied equipment used in around half of all Channel crossings, making him a key figure in the European people smuggling hierarchy, and elevating him to number one on the NCA’s list of global high value targets – the Agency’s most wanted man.

One exchange of messages between Savas and Rahimpur (above) in November 2021 followed the deaths of 27 migrants, when their boat sank in the Channel. Rahimpur sent Savas five separate images of a white rubber boat, along with a screen grab from a news website showing how an identical boat had been used in the fatal crossing.

Another video sent showed boxes of boats, controlled by Savas’ associates, piled high in a warehouse, while investigators also recovered a price list for boats, engines and life jackets.

An operation to track his movements was instigated, involving the NCA, Belgian and Dutch law enforcement, with Belgian prosecutors.

After information was received that he was attending a trade event in the Netherlands, officers moved in to have him arrested as he touched down in Schipol.

The operation to arrest him was jointly co-ordinated through a Europol Operational Task Force and assistance of Eurojust through the formation of a Joint Investigation Team.

NCA Director General of Operations, Rob Jones, said: “Adem Savas was without doubt the most significant supplier of boats and engines to people smuggling gangs involved in organising deadly crossings in the Channel, the head of a criminal network stretching across Europe to the beaches of northern France and across into the UK.

“He pretended to run a legitimate maritime supply company, but in reality he knew exactly how the equipment he provided would be used.

“He also knew exactly how unsuitable it was for long sea crossings.

“Boats and engines supplied by Savas were likely involved in numerous fatal events in the Channel – he made money from each of those.

“I’m grateful to the numerous law enforcement partners from across Europe who have worked with the NCA during the course of this investigation, particularly those in Belgium and the Netherlands.

“Tackling the gangs involved in these dangerous crossings remains a top priority for the NCA, and we are determined to do all we can to disrupt and dismantle them, wherever they operate.”

The Case Officer for the Belgian Federal Judicial Police in West Flanders said: "Thanks to the strong and efficient cooperation with the NCA and other foreign law enforcement agencies and through the building of trust-based relationships, we are able to work effectively on complex judicial investigations and arrest high-value targets.

“By combining the strengths and expertise of each law enforcement partner, we achieve international breakthroughs and stop serious threats to society.

“Over the years, the Federal Judicial Police and the Public Prosecutors office of West-Flanders built up the knowledge and experience needed to conduct judicial investigations at the highest international level.

“These long-term efforts are now paying off, as shown by our ability to bring a high-ranking facilitator of nautical equipment involved in migrant smuggling operations to justice."

Minister for Border Security and Asylum Alex Norris, said: “We are cracking down on the criminals exchanging human lives for cash.

“Our brilliant National Crime Agency officers have worked alongside international allies to take down this smuggling kingpin and put him behind bars where he belongs.

“Through our new Borders Act, law enforcement now have strengthened powers to intercept, detain and arrest people smugglers, faster – restoring order and control to our borders."

Rahimpur was directing the network from his home in Ilford, east London, sourcing the boats in Turkey and having them delivered to locations in Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.

He would then direct other members of his criminal organisation to take them on to the northern French coast, from where migrants would be transported.

The investigation started following the seizure of a number of boats and outboard motors, found by Belgian police in the back of two cars near the Belgian-French border in October 2021.

Phone analysis showed the drivers had been in contact with a UK-based phone number, engaging in message conversations about boat movements and locations for delivery.

The NCA was able to attribute the number to Rahimpur, tracking him down to east London where he was detained pending extradition.

His arrest triggered a Europe-wide operation to bring down other members of the network, which led to arrests in the UK, Germany, France and Netherlands in July 2022.

In Germany 60 inflatable boats and hundreds of life jackets which would have been used by the gang were seized.

In July 2022 a UK court ordered that Rahimpur should be extradited to Belgium to face trial in Bruges. There, prosecutors accused him of being engaged in ‘systematic human smuggling’ using small boats, charging migrants between £3,000 and £6,000 to make the crossing.

On Wednesday 18 October a judge in the Belgian city of Bruges found him guilty and sentenced him to 11 years in prison.

Another 19 people were convicted alongside him and handed jail terms of between 30 months and eight years.

NCA Deputy Director of Investigations Craig Turner said at the time: “Hewa Rahimpur’s network was, at the time of his arrest, one of the most prolific criminal groups involved in small boat crossings, playing a part in transporting thousands of migrants to the UK.

“Bringing him to justice required the co-operation of law enforcement across Europe. It demonstrates the NCA’s determination to do all we can to disrupt and dismantle these dangerous people smuggling gangs, who treat human lives as a commodity to be profited from while exploiting the UK border.

“And our work is continuing – the NCA alone currently has around 90 investigations ongoing into high-level organised immigration crime, including those using boats and HGVs.

“The criminal networks do not care about the safety of those they transport, and are happy to put people in extremely dangerous and life-threatening situations. This is why disrupting and dismantling them remains a key priority for us.”