131 India-Born British Nationals found with links to Organized Crime Gangs in UK

Data shows that a total of 131 Indian-origin citizens of the UK have been found to have links with organized crime gangs in the country, according to official data released by UK’s National Crime Agency, PTI reported.

The data shows that while about 80 per cent criminals have British nationality, only 73 per cent were born in the country.

The data, obtained through the Organized Crime Group Mapping project, showed that Albanians numbered over 600, while 393 Pakistanis, 131 Indians, 141 Somalis, 78 Poles, 47 Sri Lankans and 44 Nigerians were the other large groups of active gang members who had changed their nationality.

When birth nationality was compared with current nationality, it emerged that large numbers of organized criminals from India, Pakistan, Somalia, Poland and Kosovo became UK or European Union nationals.

“The NSA said in a statement, "Money laundering potentially running to hundreds of billions of pounds impacts the United Kingdom annually, with a significant threat being posed by the criminal exploitation of accounting and legal professionals involved with trust and company provision."

It added that the United Kingdom is a prime destination for corrupt politically-exposed foreign people, particularly from Russia, Nigeria and Pakistan, who launder money.

NCA Director General Lynne Owens said that organized criminals involved in smuggling of people or firearms also supply drugs, and the relationship between organized immigration crime and modern slavery is becoming more apparent.

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