UK crime agency to pursue up to 100 lawyers accused of helping traffickers
The National Crime Agency is preparing to pursue up to 100 lawyers it believes are helping traffickers abuse modern slavery laws to secure asylum for people entering the UK. A potentially controversial sweep is being undertaken by the NCA, the British equivalent of the FBI, to identify solicitors who may be breaching their professional code or committing crimes by providing services to organised crime. Ministers have claimed that Albanian criminal gangs are misusing the modern slavery and asylum system at a time when record numbers of people are referred to the Home Office as potential victims of exploitation. The NCA…