‘Tripadvisor for smugglers’ Welsh car wash owners plead guilty

It has been labelled “Tripadvisor for people smugglers”.

Migrants from the Middle East heading to Europe, rating their journeys in videos filmed inside lorries, boats and even on planes.

“How was the route, lads?” A man asks in one clip, as someone at the back of the lorry gives a thumbs-up.

The smugglers brought about 100 migrants illegally to Europe each week, over a period of two years.

The pair – based in a car wash in the south Wales town of Caerphilly – offered the migrants bronze, silver, gold and platinum packages – depending on risk.

A platinum package could get you a flight, whereas silver might land you a “comfortable ride” in the back of a lorry.

Investigators found the video reviews on the phones of the smugglers themselves, seemingly made as promotional material.

Now the two men, Dilshad Shamo and Ali Khdir, have pleaded guilty to people smuggling midway through their trial.