Mums given chilling Snapchat warning as police goal scammers in daybreak raid

Organised criminals are paying mums thousands of pounds to lie in an elaborate birth certificate scam, it is alleged.

Gangs are raking in a fortune by helping men fraudulently remain in the UK by pretending to have British-born children, Home Office investigators claim. Around 400 potential cases have been identified across the UK linked to one organisation – thought to be the first of its kind.

Today The Mirror joined an enforcement team and police as they swooped on an address in North London. A 28-year-old man was arrested in connection with the alleged conspiracy.

The group is claimed to be identifying single mums whose children do not have a father named on their birth certificate. These women are paid roughly £7,000 to register for a birth certificate claiming an asylum seeker who faces removal from the UK is the child’s dad.

These birth certificates are used to support bogus visa applications, investigators say. Criminals brazenly use social media sites including Snapchat to help identify mums who fit their profile, it’s alleged. They are matched up with a man, who has usually handed over around £10,000 to the gang.

The man and his legal representatives then argue he shouldn’t be removed because he has a British-born child. Criminal and Financial Investigations Officer Charlotte Mangan told The Mirror after yesterday’s raid: “As far as I’m aware this is the first group that has used this method.”

Police and Home Office officers swooped on the address in Enfield shortly before 5am. The arrested man is suspected to be involved in managing the financial side of the operation.

It first came to light when an Albanian national applied for a visa in Liverpool, allegedly claiming to be the father of a child who wasn’t his. After his arrest, information suggested a wider conspiracy was in operation.

Since that first case, the Home Office has identified hundreds more similar cases, and seven arrests have been made in recent weeks.

Ms Mangan said birth certificates are being issued based on fraudulent information, and work is ongoing to identify all those involved. After obtaining questionable references, the mother and the man will pay £40 for a birth certificate.

She continued: “They’re saying that they need to stay in the UK in order to look after their British child, that it would be unfair should they leave, that the child has to then leave.”

The investigator said: “Today’s arrest sends a clear message to the criminals exploiting the laws and borders that we won’t stand for it. And part of our mission is that we will crack down on these crimes and we will aim to stop abuse of the system, especially as the new Government continues to establish its new Border Security Command.

“Facilitating illegal entry into the UK will not be tolerated at all.”