An Egyptian fisherman, Ahmed Ebid, has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in an extensive people-smuggling operation that trafficked over 3,000 migrants across the Mediterranean.
Between October 2022 and June 2023, Ebid was instrumental in orchestrating illegal boat crossings from North Africa to Italy, with some migrants ultimately reaching the UK.
The operation, which generated over £12 million in illicit earnings, saw nearly 3,800 people packed into overcrowded fishing boats in dangerous conditions.
Ebid, 42, was convicted as the first person in the UK to face charges related to smuggling migrants from Africa to Europe via the Mediterranean. Despite applying for asylum in the UK after arriving in 2022, his case remained unresolved, leaving him in legal limbo.
His arrest followed a detailed investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA), which uncovered his involvement in smuggling operations, where he managed logistics, bribed officials, and even issued threats of violence to migrants.
At his sentencing, Judge Adam Hiddleston condemned Ebid’s ruthless actions, emphasizing the severe risks faced by migrants and the commercial nature of the operation.
Ebid’s cruel exploitation of vulnerable people was starkly revealed when evidence showed he even instructed an associate to dispose of migrants by throwing them into the sea to avoid detection.
Ebid, who had previously served five years in an Italian prison for drug smuggling, faces the likelihood of deportation after completing his sentence.
His conviction serves as a stark reminder of the dangerous underworld of human trafficking across Europe.
