Scorpio, notorious migrant smuggler, in jail – BBC

As a result of a months-long investigation by the BBC, one of the organizers of a criminal network involved in trafficking migrants to England, Greece and other countries was identified and interrogated. The reporting led to the arrest of Barzan Majid in Iraqi Kurdistan.

“We are grateful to the BBC for its coverage of the Barzan Majid case and remain committed to doing everything we can to root out criminal networks involved in human trafficking in the UK, wherever they operate.”

This is the statement from the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA), confirming the arrest of the notorious Scorpio in Iraq, which is accused of illegally importing thousands of illegal migrants from England to France and from Turkey to Greece and Italy. The British broadcaster and reporter Sue Mitchell searched for months for him in every country where traces of him were found, and were finally able to meet him in Sulaymaniyah in Iraqi Kurdistan.

The BBC investigation had begun months earlier. Sue Mitchell and Rob Laurie, a former soldier now a refugee volunteer, started in England, found him in Calais in northern France, then Turkey and finally met him in a shopping center in Sulaymaniyah. The interest of the reporter and volunteer in Scorpio was due to two factors: on the one hand, the story of a little girl, seven-year-old Marianne, whom they met in Calais and who, by a lucky chance, survived when she crossed the English Channel on an unseaworthy inflatable boat bought in Belgium . On the other hand, evidence from British authorities showed that the same mobile phone number was repeated in the mobile phones of intercepted illegal migrants, especially since 2016.

Arrived in England hidden in a truck
Barzan Majid was himself an illegal migrant who arrived in Britain hidden in a truck. This was in 2006, and then Barzan Majid, the future Scorpio, was 20 years old. Despite the British authorities' refusal to grant him leave to remain, he remained in the country, ending up in prison for weapons and drug offences.

In 2015, he was deported to Iraq, where he got his nickname Scorpionbecause for almost ten years he was engaged in… smuggling people who sought to change their place of residence in the hope of a life away from war, blood, oppression and poverty.

His gang is said to have controlled much of the illegal migrant trade between Europe and the UK between 2016 and 2021. Barzan Majid, or Scorpio, is considered one of those who are the pillars in the business of smuggling illegal immigrants. He even told the BBC that he did not know the exact number of people he had helped. “It could have been a thousand. Maybe 10,000. I didn't count them.”, – these are his own words. And he is probably right, since his “business” has spread to at least four countries, and in the UK, France and Belgium – after two years of international police investigation – he has already been convicted of a crime in absentia.

A Belgian court found him guilty of 121 counts of smuggling illegal immigrants, sentencing him to 10 years in prison and a fine of €968,000 in October 2022. His gang allegedly charged around 7,000 euros per person.

From Belgium to Turkey
BBC journalists Rob Laurie and Sue Mitchell contacted the Iranian who was involved with him in the attempt to cross the English Channel, and Scorpio then revealed that his base was in Turkey, from where he was coordinating the “operation.” The fact that Barzan Majid was in Turkey is confirmed by the testimony of his brother, who was found in Belgium and has already been released from prison. Indeed, according to a BBC report, it appears that “Scorpio” took over the “operation” from his brother when he and 25 others were arrested on the same charges.

'Scorpio': Notorious migrant smuggler 1 in prison via BBC ©Chris J. Ratcliffe/Reuters

After Belgium, the BBC journalist delegation arrived in Istanbul, where a source told them that one of the cafes in the Turkish metropolis was the site of many such meetings in which Barzan Majid played a key role. As Sue Mitchell writes, Turkey has “lax” laws on accepting immigrants from Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

“Our first investigations were unsuccessful. We asked the cafe manager if he could tell us about the trade. Silence reigned in the cafe. Immediately after this, a man walked past our table and, opening his jacket, showed us that he had a gun in his hands. It was a reminder that we are dealing with dangerous people.”

A new source told Sue Mitchell and Rob Laurie that just steps away, Scorpio recently deposited €200,000 into a money changer account. Two investigators left the seller their phone number and said they were looking for Barzan Majid.

Phone call in the middle of the night

The next day, in the middle of the night, Rob Laurie's phone rang – an unknown number, with a cloaking device. “I understand you are looking for me,” – he heard the words of the man posing as the one he was looking for. “Who is this? Scorpion?” “If you want to call me that, no problem” – he answered rather dismissively.

Unable to confirm that they were indeed speaking to Barzan Majid, two BBC journalists assumed that they were indeed speaking to him as he was written to have mentioned details that related to him.

During a telephone conversation Scorpion denied any connection with the smuggling of illegal immigrants, attributing his reputation to the media. He insisted and even shouted that he was just an intermediary, one who arranged payments and transferred money from the persecuted to “brains” criminal organization. And at the same time he appealed to the divine: “God has written when it’s time for you to die, but sometimes it’s your responsibility. God never says, “Get in the boat.”

Sue Mitchell and Rob Laurie, having found no way to trace the call, waited for a repeat call, not being sure of anything. However, in the meantime, Rob Laurie's Turkish interlocutor confirmed to him that Barzan Majid's business “opened” in Turkey as he transported migrants across the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas to Greece or Italy. Each person had to pay 10,000 euros to be able to squeeze into a boat of dubious quality, driven by people who knew nothing about navigation.

In fact, on the same day they received the call, they learned that a boat designed for 12 people was leaving the Turkish coast with 100 people of various ages. “Over the past 10 years, more than 720,000 people are believed to have attempted to cross the eastern Mediterranean into Europe. Of these, almost 2,500 died, mostly from drowning.”writes Sue Mitchell.

From Marmarida to Sulaymaniyah
The BBC mission contacted the Turkish authorities to gather any information necessary to get as close as possible to Scorpio. The police told them that Barzan Bazid was rumored to have a villa in Marmarid. This was confirmed by a person close to Scorpio. “He is interested in money, not in the fate of people,” – he told them. He also said that he witnessed such a conspiracy, and he was ashamed that he did nothing. At the same time, he said that he had heard that the trader was at that time in Iraq, in the Kurdish city of Sulaymaniyah, where the BBC mission was heading.

He cares about money, not the fate of people

From a conversation on a hidden phone between Scorpio and Rob Laurie's source suggested that the trafficker was afraid that they would capture him and send him back to Europe, where he was convicted in absentia. Between Scorpio and Rob Laurie there were many exchanges of messages, but eventually the British ex-soldier was again found speaking directly to Barzan Bazid.

“I will only meet you if I choose the place myself,” – he told BBC reporters. The two Britons feared it was a trap. After much persuasion, Barzan Bazid asked them where they were so that he could meet them halfway. They eventually met in a shopping center in Sulaymaniyah. Apparently, Scorpio did not arrive alone: ​​three men sitting nearby turned out to be his personal guard.

Golfer with manicure

“Barzan Majid looked like a wealthy golfer. He was dressed smartly: new jeans, a light blue shirt and a black vest. When he put his hands on the table, I saw that he had well-groomed nails, writes Sue Mitchell. – Of course, he denied that he was in any way part of the upper echelons of the gang involved in the trafficking of illegal immigrants, and that he was tried to be turned in by “colleagues” who were arrested and sought a more lenient sentence by “turning in” someone else, as he claimed.” .

“For him, a smuggler is someone who loads people onto boats and trucks and transports them: “I never put anyone on a boat and I never killed anyone.”wrote Sue Mitchell.

“Nobody forced them. They wanted it themselves.” – Barzan Majid said about the migrants, who, according to him, “begged the smugglers, 'Please do this for us.'”

Later, he brought Rob to his office at the foreign exchange exchange to show him his workspace. “It was a small office – there was an advertisement in Arabic and several mobile phone numbers in the window. People came there to pay their passage to Europe. “Rob said that when he was there, he saw a man carrying a box full of cash.”

“Nobody forced them. They wanted it themselves.” – says Barzan Majid about migrants, who, according to him, “begged the smugglers: “Please do this for us.” Sometimes smugglers say: “Only for God's sake I will help them”. And then they complain, they say: “Oh, this, this…” No that's not true”says the BBC report.

Scorpion He didn't realize it, but while scrolling through his cell phone, Rob caught the reflection of the screen in the polished frame on the wall behind him. Rob managed to make out lists of passport numbers. We later learned that smugglers were sending them to Iraqi officials. They were then bribed to issue false visas so the migrants could travel to Turkey.

“Lack of Remorse”
“During our interview, I was struck by the lack of remorse, the smug excuses: that the police are lying, that they are just intermediaries, and that deaths, when they happen, are God’s will.” – Sue Mitchell later wrote in the Telegraph newspaper.

Since then, Sue Mitchell and Rob Laurie have had no further contact with Scorpio. Except for the moment when, after sharing all the information with the relevant authorities, they learned that last Sunday morning he was captured in Iraq by the Kurdistan Regional Command forces.

Majid and his brothers

“Colleagues asked us if we were afraid that one day he might find us: it’s a risk, he has extensive criminal connections in the UK, but we weighed the risk and decided it was worth taking.”, wrote Sue Mitchell in the Telegraph newspaper. Martin Clarke from the National Crime Agency said that “They are confident that Majid should serve a 10-year sentence in Europe, imposed in absentia. Looking at his carefree world in a bright coffee shop 3,000 miles away, this seems unlikely. By following this man's story, we saw how big the trafficking of illegal immigrants is, how much money they make from it, and how complex and expensive the operation is for the police.”

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