BBC investigates violent cross-Channel migrant smuggling gangs | BBC News

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A BBC investigation has exposed the French and UK operations of a powerful and violent smuggling gang taking people across the English Channel in small boats. A reporter, posing as a migrant wanting to cross, helped us gain unprecedented access to the smugglers' notorious forest hideout in northern France - an area plagued by armed battles between rival gangs. Multiple sources have described how gang leaders, who keep one step ahead of the authorities by changing mobile phone numbers and the gang's name, subjected their henchmen and migrants to violent beatings. As of 30 July, more than 25,000 people had crossed the Channel in small boats in 2025 - about 49% higher than at the same point in 2024.