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People smugglers stopped
migrants brought ashore in Rye, East Sussex, in February 2022.
A 36yearold Iraqi national was arrested by NCA officers in Barnet, north London, in connection with that particular incident. He was later released on bail pending further enquiries. During the investigation, a second yacht, the Lady Ann, was identified as being located in Belgium and travelled from there to Boulognesurmer.
On June 1, 2022, a 43yearold Georgian national, Igor Romanovi, who skippered the vessel was arrested by French police while the boat was docked in Boulogne.
Romanovi was prosecuted for people smuggling offences and on June 26, 2023, he was sentenced to four years in prison by a court in Dieppe. He has also been banned from French territory upon his release. The regional manager for NCA International, Tom
Outhwaite, commented: “Tackling people smuggling is a priority for the NCA and we are working closely with our partners in France, Belgium and beyond to target the organised criminals involved on both sides of the Channel.”
The NCA’s successful operation was supported by the authorities in France and Belgium, as well as Sussex Police, Border Force, Immigration Enforcement and the Crown Prosecution Service.
