People smugglers are now selling 'business and first class' services to help ... trends now

A prolific people smuggler who's on a global 'most wanted list' is so 'addicted' to making illegal millions that he's introduced 'economy, business and first class' tiers to migrants desperate for a new life in the UK - including £18,000 'less stress' ferry tickets across the Channel. 

A new BBC Radio 4 Intrigue podcast To Catch a Scorpion sees journalist Sue Mitchell join forces with volunteer aid worker - and former Army expert - Rob Lawrie to try and track down ruthless smuggler Barzan Majeed, who was born in Iraq and uses the codename 'Scorpion'.

The podcast, of which there are three episodes released so far with five more dropping on May 10th, sees the pair try and track down the criminal mastermind, who continues to evade capture, in spite of an international police surveillance operation that has imprisoned many of his underworld colleagues.

In 2022, he was handed a ten-year jail sentence for people smuggling in his absence at a court in Bruges. Majeed, who was once based in Nottingham, was also handed a 968,000 Euro (£849,000) fine.

One anonymous contact who knew Scorpion during the early days of his criminal career estimates he's now covertly moved tens of thousands of people - putting many of their lives at risk in lorries and on inadequate boats - across a whole continent and has made millions doing it.

With his voice disguised, the man says: 'He loves the nice cars, the nice house, he was living the high life, he had money always - $200,000 always under his bed.

'In one night, he made £500,000. He had 56 passengers, minimum price was £9,000 [pp] for the lorry.' 

The third episode of the series unearths how corruption within border control has led Scorpion to a new, more expensive way of reaching British shores.  

Another contact says he's now offering 'a premier service', explaining: 'Barzaan said there's three modes: business, economic [SIC] and first class.'

Mitchell and Lawrie are left astonished after they speak to an anonymous Iranian man about how he successfully made it to the UK via the 'premium' cross-Channel ferry route, touting it as the 'safest' way to travel. 

He tells them that he travelled with his wife and father, after paying £18,000 to Scorpion's gang. 

The man says he was told he would be able to board a ferry in Calais right under the noses of the authorities and 'no-one would stop them'.

He draws a map for Mitchell and Lawrie who then go to Calais to re-trace his steps and see if his story lines up - and they quickly find the electronic gate his family's journey to England began with.

The exit gate is only ever to be used by staff at the Port of Calais and Scorpion's gang members tell the family to dress smartly and 'stride with confidence', the podcast recounts.

The family were told the gate would open at 8pm and then they should hide in a toilet block for 20 minutes, which they did. 

The Iranian says: 'We had just 30 seconds, we passed the door and just walked in. When we passed the door I saw the police.'

Lawrie says: 'You just walked past them?' The man replies: 'Yeah, yeah'.

A corrupt official in the Scorpions pay knocked on the door of the toilet block and then proceeded to drive the family on to the ferry, avoiding British passport controls.

Lawrie says: 'The man was confident enough to invite them out of his car and buy them an English breakfast on the ferry.'

Lawrie and Mitchell then travel to Calais to check out the claims and find the staff exit gate 'just as he describes'. 

'And on the side of that is the office door that opens up. You can see it there. It's exactly right. What he says. I mean, put yourself in there. He's going to walk through all this officialdom,' Mitchell says.

'And he's gotta walk with confidence through that gate and walk towards that door as if it's gonna open at exactly the right time. I mean, that's something out of a movie isn't it?'