Two thirds of tagged Albanian migrants have cut them off or tampered with them

Home Office figures show 65 per cent of Albanians tagged since last June to prevent them skipping immigration bail were 'non compliant'

One Albanian - tagged after being charged with growing 800 cannabis plants in an illegal farm - even demonstrated in a video how to remove his ankle tag, using nothing more than kitchen scissors.
One Albanian, who was tagged after being charged with growing 800 cannabis plants, demonstrated how to remove his ankle tag using nothing more than kitchen scissors in a TikTok video

Two thirds of the Albanian Channel migrants who were electronically tagged to prevent them absconding have cut them off or tampered with them in a bid to escape, Home Office figures show.

Albanians accounted for 204 of the 284 Channel migrants tagged since June last year to stop them skipping immigration bail or disappearing into the black economy.

But Home Office figures show 133 of the 204 - 65 per cent - were “non-compliant”, meaning they breached their tagging conditions, including in many cases by removing them.

Additionally, 51 of the 64 Albanian criminals who were tagged in advance of their potential deportation also broke their conditions.

The Telegraph uncovered TikTok videos of Albanians boasting on the social media platform how easy it was to cut off their tags, including one group of three men pictured in front of Tower Bridge with their severed ankle tags.

Another Albanian - tagged after being charged with growing 800 cannabis plants in an illegal farm - even demonstrated in a video how to remove his ankle tag, using nothing more than kitchen scissors.

Ankle tags
One TikTok video shows a group of three men pictured in front of Tower Bridge with their severed ankle tags

Government sources said legitimate asylum seekers were less likely to break off their tags as it would jeopardise their chances of being granted leave to remain in the UK.

“The others want to claim asylum, they keep the tags on and go through the process of trying to claim asylum,” said a source. “Many Albanians come here to work, not to claim asylum.”

At least a quarter of the 46,000 migrants who crossed the Channel last year were Albanian, up from 800 in 2021. 

Numbers have fallen off over the winter, attributed partly to the increased risks from bad weather and following a Government crackdown.

Ministers have struck a new deal with Albania to fast-track the return of migrants on the basis that it is a “safe” country seeking EU membership, which Rishi Sunak has said means the majority of asylum claims by Albanians can be treated as unfounded.

There are currently about 15,000 people across England and Wales on tags, with the Government aiming to increase it to 25,000 by 2025. Anyone removing or breaching their tagging faces being sent to jail.

An Albanian source said: “They don't care if they are tagged. In order to avoid deportation they go underground and remove the tags.”

A probation service spokesman said: “Those who tamper with tags are reported instantly thanks to sophisticated safety measures and face going back to court or prison if they do.”

It came as Olta Xhacka, Albania’s foreign minister, attacked Rober Jenrick, the immigration minister, for “verbally lynching” the Albanian nation with his language about “finding and detaining” Albanians in the UK.

Mr Jenrick posted a video on Twitter in which he praised immigration enforcement officers for “finding and detaining” Albanians so they could be deported.

However, Mr Xhacka tweeted: “Shocked beyond words to hear a minister of state in charge of immigration use such language for some more miserable votes. ‘Find the Albanian, detain the Albanian!’

“A verbal lynching of a whole nation in language that sounds like the minister is declaring open season on Albanians, mere weeks after a joint communique of AL and UK prime ministers praised the role of the Albanian diaspora in the UK and its significant contribution to the culture, economy and society of both countries.

“A shameful singling out of a community from a minister of a great democracy that brings back horrifying memories with an unbearable brutality!”

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