Man jailed for supplying gangs with thousands of Channel small boats

A man who sold thousands of small boats and engines to smugglers in the English Channel has been sentenced to prison for thousands of smugglings. The National Crime Agency, which had previously listed Adem Savas as its Most Wanted Man, as without a doubt the most important contributor to the gangs behind the deadly crossings between 2019 and 2024, describing him as no doubt the top provider to gang On Wednesday, the Turkish national was sentenced to 11 years in jail and received a fine of €400,000 (£346,000) after admitting to charges of smuggling and being a member of an organized criminal group. The NCA said he had possibly made millions from the operation, having been charged on average £4,000 for boxes of boats and engines.

According to the department, the 45-year-old is also known to have supplied machinery in about half of all crossings in 2023, "making him a central figure in the European people smuggling hierarchy. Savas was sentenced to prison in Bruges, Belgium, following a joint operation between the NCA and Belgian authorities after being arrested at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport in November 2024.

He was first discovered in 2023 during an inquiry into Hewa Rahimpur, a Kurdish national who was believed to be responsible for the movement of more than 10,000 migrants in small boats to the UK. According to the NCA, Savas was discovered to be his

key supplier of boats and engines. Savas' supplies

weren't likely involved in many deadly events in the Channel,

according to Rob Jones, the agency's director general of operations.

He pretended to be a legitimate maritime supply company, but in reality, he knew exactly how the equipment would be used.

He also knew exactly how bad it was for long sea crossings.

This smuggling kingpin

was convicted by border security minister Alex Norris, who said the UK was

cracking down on the criminals swapping human lives for money. According to Home Office reports, a total of 41,472 migrants crossed the Channel in tiny boats in 2025, almost five more than the previous year. It was the largest number since 2022, when nearly 46,000 migrants crossed. Since 2020, such crossings have been the most common way for people to enter the country illegally. At least 84 people died trying to cross the Channel in 2024, according to the United Nations. According to experts, the risks of the journey have risen as a result of overcrowding on boats.