Fugitive found and extradited

A ROMANIAN man who was wanted in connection with a conspiracy to smuggle 17 men, women and children into the UK in the back of a van has been arrested and extradited.

Vasile Costache, 54, previously of Hounslow, was initially detained by the National Crime Agency (NCA) in September last year but failed to show up at court. That initial arrest followed an operation in June 2019 that saw a Britishregistered Mercedes van intercepted by Dutch police working with the NCA. A group of Afghan migrants had been loaded on board near Breda in the Netherlands, and the vehicle was travelling towards the Hook of Holland for a ferry to the UK when it was stopped.

Costache, who also uses the name Vasile Matei, is alleged to have worked with a number of others to organise the attempt. He was charged with conspiring to facilitate illegal immigration and granted bail, but he failed to turn up to a court hearing in Croydon in June, so a warrant was issued for his arrest.

Last month Costache was located and detained by Romanian police in the town of Ploiesti, north of Bucharest, where he lived. He was returned back to the UK on Monday last week and appeared before Westminster Magistrates the following day.

He was remanded in custody and will appear before Croydon Crown Court on Friday. Costache is one of 16 people due to stand trial in January following a wider NCA investigation into money laundering and organised immigration crime. Two other individuals have pleaded guilty.