Three people from Southall have been convicted of international money laundering and people smuggling.

A total of sixteen people were convicted following a major National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation into a West London-based organised crime group.

Between 2017 and 2019, the members of this network made numerous trips to Dubai, UAE, and smuggled over £42 million in cash out of the UK.

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According to NCA investigators, the money was from the sale of Class A drugs and organized immigration crime.

Around £1.5 million was seized from couriers leaving the UK but flight analysis, evidence from cash declarations in Dubai, and other material seized by the NCA showed the group had succeeded in transporting far more.

During the investigation, NCA officers also discovered a plan by members of the organized crime group to smuggle 17 migrants, which included five children and a pregnant woman, into the UK by hiding them in the back of a van that was transporting tyres in 2019.

The van was intercepted by Dutch police, who were working with the NCA, before it could reach a ferry at the Hook of Holland.

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In November 2019, after weeks of surveillance, communications monitoring, and flight data analysis, authorities conducted a series of early morning raids across west London resulting in several arrests. Among those detained was 44 years old Charan Singh from Hounslow, the ringleader of the gang.

According to documents found, Singh and his couriers made at least 58 trips to Dubai in 2017.

After further arrests, those charged were prosecuted in two trials at Croydon Crown Court in January 2023. All 16 were convicted and will be sentenced at a hearing starting on 11 September 2023.

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NCA senior investigating officer Chris Hill said: "This has been a long and complex investigation into an organised crime group involved in money laundering on a commercial scale and organised immigration crime."

"Over a two-year period, working together with partners in the UK and abroad, NCA investigators were able to uncover the evidence to secure these convictions."

"This case demonstrates the continued commitment by the NCA to protect the public and target the criminal networks involved in both people smuggling and money laundering."

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Those who appeared in court included:

• Jackdar Kapoor, 40, from Hillary Road, Southall pleaded guilty to x18 counts of removing criminal property – bailed pending sentencing
• Sundar Vengadassalm, 48, from Hadfield Close, Southall, Middlesex, found guilty of removing criminal property, and found NOT GUILTY of x5 separate counts of removing criminal property – bailed pending sentencing
• Jasbir Singh Dhal, 32, from Norwood Rd, Southall, Middlesex found guilty of conspiring to remove criminal property – remanded in custody until sentencing

NCA Images: Jackdar Kapoor, Sundar Vengadassalm and Jasbir Singh Dhal