UK security agencies warn of Iranian IRGC exploitation of Channel small‑boat routes amid firearms smuggling bust

Former National Crime Agency deputy director Roy McComb warned that the scale of illegal Channel crossings is a national security concern, saying organised smuggling networks could be exploited by hostile states such as Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). He argued that the small‑boat crisis is being treated as a humanitarian issue while it also presents a conduit for covert activity and foreign intelligence operations.

In a separate case, the NCA and Border Force intercepted a 57‑year‑old Bulgarian national, Petar Petrov, at Dover’s Eastern Docks. A high‑tech scan revealed a concealed arsenal of 54 fully functional handguns, 764 rounds of ammunition and knives hidden in a Mercedes Sprinter. Petrov was convicted of firearms smuggling and sentenced to 12 years in prison, highlighting the threat convergence between organised crime and potential foreign exploitation of migration routes.