UK immigration officers charged with robbing migrants
Five British immigration officers have appeared in court on charges of stealing cash from illegal migrants who arrived in the UK across the English Channel on small boats, Reuters reported on Thursday.
The officers were charged at Westminster Magistrates’ Court with conspiracy to steal, misconduct in public office, and money laundering for alleged offenses between August 2021 and November 2022.
Prosecutors told the court the defendants worked on Britain’s south coast “dealing with recent arrivals on small boats.” It stated that many of these people arrived “with relatively large sums of money in cash on their person,” and that the officers “worked together to take that money for themselves and share it.”
A sixth defendant faces a single charge of money laundering. All six were granted bail, with their next hearing scheduled at Southwark Crown Court next month. None were asked to enter pleas.
The case comes amid rising tensions over immigration across the UK as illegal boat crossings have become a focal point for many voters and have led to a rise of anti-immigration sentiment. The controversy has further been escalated by increasing criminal activity linked to illegals.
Fake Sponsorships
Earlier this week, The Times reported on a black market in fake skilled-worker visa sponsorships. An investigation found agents charging up to £20,000 ($27,500) to fabricate payroll records for non-existent jobs, allowing migrants to stay in the UK while forcing them into unofficial cash-in-hand work.
The issues have eroded trust in the British government, with polls showing Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s approval rating plummeting while support for Nigel Farage’s opposition right-wing Reform party has risen.
The government has responded by announcing a planned overhaul of its immigration policy in an effort to reduce the number of arriving illegals. In November, the British Home Office also proposed confiscating high-value assets, including vehicles and “bags full of gold rings,” from asylum seekers to help cover the cost of benefits.
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China executes 11 over Myanmar scam centers
The 11 gang members were executed by the Wenzhou Intermediate People's Court of Zhejiang province, Xinhua reported. The method of execution was not mentioned, though death sentences are carried out either by firing squad or lethal injection.
The Ming-family crime syndicate is one of several criminal organizations that have taken advantage of the ongoing civil war in Myanmar to generate billions from running online scam centers using human trafficking, forced labor and torture in the Asian nation.
Those executed Thursday were sentenced to death in September for intentional homicide, intentional injury, illegal detention, fraud and operating gambling establishments.
The court found that they had been operating several Myanmar scam centers engaged in telecom fraud, illegal gambling and other crimes.
Two of the members appealed their conviction in September, but the verdict was upheld in November.
China's Supreme People's Court reviewed the case and confirmed the criminal syndicate had established the compounds in northern Myanmar's Kokang region, where they recruited financiers and provided armed protection for the scheme, generating more than $1.4 billion in illicit funds, according to state-run media.
The group was also found to have conspired with other organizations running scam centers to deliberately kill, injure or illegally detain workers, resulting in the deaths of 14 Chinese citizens, the high court found.
China is believed to have conducted more executions than any other country, though its use of the death penalty, according to the United Nations Human Rights Office, "remains shrouded in secrecy, making it difficult to obtain accurate numbers."
Amnesty International has said that China is believed to execute thousands a year.
German police raid Deutsche Bank in money laundering investigation
Deutsche Bank said in a statement that it is cooperating with law enforcement on the investigation.
"We confirm Frankfurt prosecutors are currently conducting an investigation at Deutsche Bank's business premises," the statement said. "We are cooperating fully with [the] prosecutor's office. We cannot comment further on this matter."
The prosecutors say the probe is related to executives and employees of Deutsche Bank who are suspected of being involved in money laundering. Prosecutors also say Deutsche Bank has maintained relationships with foreign companies that were suspected to be part of a money laundering scheme.
Suspects in the investigation have not been named.
News of the investigation preceded shares in Deutsche Bank falling by about 2.7%.
Deutsche Bank is set to release its fourth quarter 2025 and year-end earnings report on Thursday.
The investigation marks the third time in the last eight years that law enforcement has probed Deutsche Bank. It did so in 2022, also in a money laundering investigation, and in 2018 in an investigation of two employees for tax evasion.
Deutsche Bank has been penalized in the past for delays in its anti-money laundering reports. Banks are required by law to promptly file reports of suspicious activity.
