Albanian Man Jailed for Organizing Migrant Boat Crossings Using WhatsApp

Mustaf Cunaj, a 41-year-old Albanian man living in Tolworth, southwest London, has been sentenced to nine years in prison for orchestrating at least 31 small boat crossings for migrants, including children as young as five, from northern France to the United Kingdom. Cunaj, operating under the alias 'John Brown,' used WhatsApp to maintain constant communication with people smugglers in northern France, arranging the illegal crossings within a span of five weeks in 2022.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation revealed Cunaj's involvement in negotiating the passage of a woman and her two young children, aged five and nine, across the English Channel for £7,500. Cunaj's extensive communication history with a key player in a larger people smuggling network, as well as his discussions about procuring inflatable boats and lifejackets, provided damning evidence of his role in the illicit operations.

Cunaj was part of a network of UK-based fixers linked to Hewa Rahimpur, the head of a people smuggling network believed to be involved in smuggling around 10,000 migrants to the UK. Rahimpur was sentenced to 11 years in prison in Belgium last October for overseeing the operation.

Why this matters: The case highlights the ongoing issue of people smuggling and the hazardous journeys migrants undertake to reach the UK. It also underscores the role of technology, such as WhatsApp, in facilitating these illegal activities.

Cunaj was initially arrested in October 2022, released under investigation, and then rearrested in September 2023 and formally charged with people smuggling offences. Despite initially denying any wrongdoing, he eventually confessed to conspiring to facilitate illegal immigration. The NCA stated that Cunaj had shown "no regard" for the safety of the people he was smuggling, emphasizing the extreme danger of entering the UK via small boats.

Key Takeaways

• Mustaf Cunaj, 41, sentenced to 9 years for smuggling 31 migrants to UK via small boats.
• Cunaj used WhatsApp to coordinate with smugglers, including arranging a woman and 2 children's passage.
• Cunaj was part of a UK-based network linked to a larger people smuggling operation of 10,000 migrants.
• Case highlights the dangers of small boat crossings and the role of technology in facilitating smuggling.
• Cunaj initially denied wrongdoing but later confessed to conspiring to facilitate illegal immigration.