Two Albanian nationals who used a plane to illegally transport migrants from northern France to an airfield in Essex have been found guilty of people smuggling.
Myrteza Hilaj, 50, and Kreshnik Kadena, 37, were found guilty on Friday at Southwark Crown Court, writes The Independent.
The convictions followed an eight-year investigation by the National Crime Agency (NCA), codenamed Operation Micropus, into an Albanian organized crime group accused of facilitating illegal migration, money laundering, drug trafficking and document forgery.
According to British media, Hilaj is accused of transporting Albanian immigrants by plane and in the back of trucks. While Kadena acted as his assistant.
Albanian migrants paid "up to £10,000" for transit to the UK and then "a few hundred pounds extra" for false documents, the NCA said.