One of Europe’s most infamous people-smugglers, Barzan Majeed, was captured in Iraq following a BBC probe.
Majeed, also known by the alias Scorpion, was apprehended in Iraqi Kurdistan, according to a senior government official.
He had been actively involved in smuggling people across the English Channel using boats and lorries for several years. The BBC located Majeed in Sulaymaniya, where he admitted to transporting thousands of migrants, though he could not provide an exact count.
A Kurdistan Regional Government official credited the BBC’s investigative findings for helping to locate Majeed, stating that he was arrested outside his home without any significant issues at 7 am.
Following his capture, local authorities are preparing charges against him, with plans to coordinate with European law enforcement for further questioning and legal action.
The UK’s National Crime Agency confirmed the arrest and expressed gratitude towards the BBC for spotlighting Majeed’s activities. They emphasized their commitment to disrupting criminal networks involved in human smuggling.
Majeed, known as Scorpion, controlled a significant portion of the smuggling trade from Europe to the UK between 2016 and 2021.
Despite 26 members of his gang being convicted through an international police operation, Scorpion had managed to elude capture until recently.
Previously tried in his absence in Belgium, he was convicted on 121 counts of people-smuggling, receiving a 10-year prison sentence and a substantial fine.
Prior to his arrest, the BBC located Majeed and, during an interview, he displayed little empathy for migrants who had drowned, attributing their deaths to personal fault and divine will.
He also denied being a major figure within a criminal organization, suggesting that other gang members had falsely implicated him to reduce their sentences.
He invited Rob Lawrie, a former soldier and refugee worker involved in the BBC investigation, to observe his business operations in Sulaymaniyah, insisting that the migrants had voluntarily sought the smugglers’ help.
Ann Lukowiak of the Belgian public prosecutor’s office hailed Majeed’s arrest, viewing it as a crucial step towards achieving justice and holding him accountable for his crimes.
