Pair jailed for advertising small-boat crossings

Two Vietnamese nationals who advertised small boat people smuggling services on Facebook have been jailed following a joint UK-French investigation.

Hoang My Tra Nguyen, 25, of Heathfield Road in Croydon, and Hop Cahn Nguyen, 36, of Grasmere Street, Leicester, advertised small‑boat crossings from France to the UK, "targeting" the Vietnamese community.

They arrived in the UK by small boats in January and July 2023 and were arrested by National Crime Agency (NCA) officers in April 2024.

The pair admitted assisting unlawful immigration at Croydon Crown Court in August 2024, and at the same court on Monday, Hop was sentenced to 12 years in prison and Hoang to 10 years and six months.

The NCA said Hoang and Hop controlled Facebook accounts, together with another male who is awaiting extradition to France, that included video clips of individuals travelling on a small boat and provided UK mobile numbers to arrange travel.

Messages included: "I still have a few direct flights to the UK. Passport available everyone" and "Orders for you guys who want to enter Europe with a cheap price... you guys hurry and get a seat".

Hoang and Hop would arrange crossings for migrants and helped them to abscond by putting them in touch with a third party once their claims were processed.

Officers put the group under surveillance and began to monitor their movements over the course of five months.

In February 2024, Hop was stopped by British Transport Police officers at Euston station, attempting to travel to Birmingham with migrants who had recently crossed the Channel via small boat, the NCA said.

Following their arrests in April, officers seized numerous mobile phones, sim cards and ledgers detailing the names, costs and details of routes.

NCA Branch Commander Saju Sasikumar said the pair claimed "cheap prices and urgency to entice people looking for a new life".

"These crossings are extremely dangerous and the defendants had no interest in the safety of those making the journey aside from ensuring they received their payment and made significant profits," said Sasikumar.

Hilary Ryan, specialist prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service, said the pair tried to "undermine our borders".

Ryan added: "Their operation was sophisticated and they stood to make hundreds of thousands of pounds, and the sentence reflects that."

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