A man who sought asylum in Britain from Iran will go on trial today in Belgium, accused of leading an organised crime gang that helped smuggle thousands of people across the English Channel.
Hewa Rahimpur, 30, is alleged to have led a gang that criss-crossed Europe, sourcing boats, engines and life-jackets for migrant crossings.
The gang is claimed to have brought the items into Germany, using suppliers in Turkey and China, before later driving them to northern France.
Image: Hewa Rahimpur being arrested by NCA officers
There the boats were handed over to groups of migrants waiting near the sea, who were given rudimentary instructions about how to use the boats to try to get to Britain.
Rahimpur is one of 21 people who are facing trial in Bruges. The other 20 were all registered as living in Germany, but Rahimpur had made his home in Ilford, east London.
He was arrested in May 2022 by police from the National Crime Agency.
Image: Rahimpur was driving to work when he was detained in May 2022
Rahimpur has been charged with being “a leading person” in a criminal organisation committed to smuggling people across the European Union.
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The court will be told that, operating from Britain, he arranged the logistics of the people-smuggling network, co-ordinating the purchase of boats and other materials and then arranged for them to be delivered to France at just the right time to meet pre-arranged groups of paying customers.
Rahimpur’s arrest was part of a co-ordinated investigation carried out by police in Britain, France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.
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Image: Life jackets were seized at a farm near Osnabruck, Germany, in 2022
According to the NCA, a total of 135 boats, 45 outboard engines and more than 1,200 life jackets were seized. Around half the boats were being stored at a single location – a farm in Osnabruck, Germany.
The NCA’s regional head of investigations, Jacque Beer, said the crime group was “one of the most significant criminal networks involved in supplying boats to people smugglers”.
The indictment against Rahimpur, in common with the all defendants, claims they smuggled children and adults, took advantage of “the vulnerable condition” of people, endangered lives and brought “unidentified victims” into the realm of crime.
The allegation says the crimes were so common that they became “a habit”.
Image: A total of 135 boats, 45 outboard engines and more than 1,200 life jackets were seized in the operation, according to the NCA
As well as facing a lengthy jail term, and deportation, prosecutors have demanded that Rahimpur repay £157,000 – a sum described as “the capital gains derived directly from the crime”.
Rahimpur arrived in Britain in 2016 and claimed asylum, saying he was an Iranian Kurd who would face persecution if he was returned home. Four years later, he was given leave to remain, and he set up a barber’s shop with a friend.
The business struggled and Rahimpur turned his attention to starting an east London food kiosk, called Manor Park Retails, in 2021. The following year, he was arrested while driving to work.
The trial of the men will be held at the main court in Bruges in front of legal teams who are familiar with allegations of people smuggling.
The case has officially been scheduled for a single day, but the court has been reserved until the end of the week.
Worldwide stock markets have plummeted for the second day running as the fallout from Donald Trump’s global tariffs continues.
While European and Asian markets suffered notable falls, American indexes were the worst hit, with Wall Street closing to a sea of red on Friday following Thursday’s rout – the worst day in US markets since the COVID-19 pandemic.
All three of the US’s major indexes were down by more than 5% at market close; The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 was 5.97% lower, and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 5.82%.
The Nasdaq was also 22% below its record-high set in December, which indicates a bear market.
Ever since the US president announced the tariffs on Wednesday evening, analysts estimate that around $4.9trn (£3.8trn) has been wiped off the value of the global stock market.
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Mr Trump has remained unapologetic as the markets struggle, posting in all-caps on Truth Social before the markets closed that “only the weak will fail”.
The UK’s leading stock market, the FTSE 100, also suffered its worst daily drop in more than five years, closing 4.95% down, a level not seen since March 2020.
And the Japanese exchange Nikkei 225 dropped by 2.75% at end of trading, down 20% from its recent peak in July last year.
Image: US indexes had the worst day of trading since the COVID-19 pandemic. Pic: Reuters
Trump holds trade deal talks – reports
It comes as a source told CNN that Mr Trump has been in discussions with Vietnamese, Indianand Israelirepresentatives to negotiate bespoke trade deals that could alleviate proposed tariffs on those countries before a deadline next week.
The source told the US broadcaster the talks were being held in advance of the reciprocal levies going into effect next week.
Vietnam faced one of the highest reciprocal tariffs announced by the US president this week, with 46% rates on imports. Israeli imports face a 17% rate, and Indian goods will be subject to 26% tariffs.
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China – hit with 34% tariffs on imported goods – has also announced it will issue its own levy of the same rate on US imports.
Mr Trump said China “played it wrong” and “panicked – the one thing they cannot afford to do” in another all-caps Truth Social post earlier on Friday.
Later, on Air Force One, the US president told reporters that “the beauty” of the tariffs is that they allow for negotiations, referencing talks with Chinese company ByteDance on the sale of social media app TikTok.
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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump
He said: “We have a situation with TikTok where China will probably say, ‘We’ll approve a deal, but will you do something on the tariffs?’
“The tariffs give us great power to negotiate. They always have.”
Global financial markets gave a clear vote of no-confidence in President Trump’s economic policy.
The damage it will do is obvious: costs for companies will rise, hitting their earnings.
The consequences will ripple throughout the global economy, with economists now raising their expectations for a recession, not only in the US, but across the world.
The court ruled to uphold the impeachment saying the conservative leader “violated his duty as commander-in-chief by mobilising troops” when he declared martial law.
The president was also said to have taken actions “beyond the powers provided in the constitution”.
Image: Demonstrators stayed overnight near the constitutional court. Pic: AP
Supporters and opponents of the president gathered in their thousands in central Seoul as they awaited the ruling.
The 64-year-old shocked MPs, the public and international allies in early December when he declared martial law, meaning all existing laws regarding civilians were suspended in place of military law.
Image: The court was under heavy police security guard ahead of the announcement. Pic: AP
After suddenly declaring martial law, Mr Yoon sent hundreds of soldiers and police officers to the National Assembly.
He has argued that he sought to maintain order, but some senior military and police officers sent there have told hearings and investigators that Mr Yoon ordered them to drag out politicians to prevent an assembly vote on his decree.
His presidential powers were suspended when the opposition-dominated assembly voted to impeach him on 14 December, accusing him of rebellion.
The unanimous verdict to uphold parliament’s impeachment and remove Mr Yoon from office required the support of at least six of the court’s eight justices.
South Korea must hold a national election within two months to find a new leader.
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favourite to become the country’s next president, according to surveys.