Five jailed after Wrexham nail bar linked to people-smuggling gang
The National Crime Agency says cash collected at a Wrexham nail bar was part of a wider operation to smuggle Vietnamese migrants into the UK and launder more than £1.6 million.
Last updated 16th Sep 2026
Five jailed after Wrexham nail bar linked to people-smuggling gang
Five men have been jailed for almost forty years after cash collected from a Wrexham nail bar was linked to a people-smuggling gang.
Vietnamese migrants were brought into the UK in small boats and lorries, before being placed in workplaces to repay the cost of their illegal entry.
The group laundered more than £1.6 million through money transfers to Vietnam.
The National Crime Agency says three of the men were seen travelling from Coventry to a nail bar in the Wrexham area before their arrests in October last year.
A blue bag containing cash was collected from the nail bar.
The vehicle then travelled to an Asda store in Wigan, where two of the men attempted to transfer money through Western Union.
They were found with around £4,000 in cash, while another man was found with more than £13,400 and eight Vietnamese passports.
The investigation found migrants' passports were taken from them in France before they travelled to the UK.
The NCA says the passports were then used as a form of "debt bondage", with migrants required to pay money for their illegal entry.
The wider investigation found more than £1.65 million had been transferred to accounts in Vietnam through 740 transactions between July 2024 and October 2025.
The investigation began after French Customs officers seized a package at Charles de Gaulle Airport in July 2025. It was addressed to Quang Nguyen and contained 22 Vietnamese passports.
The NCA later identified five members of the organised crime group: twin brothers Vinh and Quang Van Nguyen, Van Huy Nguyen, Lia-Chien Trong and Sy Trai Ho.
The NCA says the group advertised people-smuggling services from Vietnam to Europe, with members collecting cash from locations across the UK and sending it to Vietnam.
All five were sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court.
Vinh Van Nguyen was sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison, Quang Van Nguyen to nine years and nine months, Huy to seven years and two months, Trong to six years and Ho to four years.
The investigation was carried out jointly by the National Crime Agency, French and Belgian authorities.