Three British sniffer dogs are being deployed in the fight against Channel smuggling gangs at one of the world's busiest land borders, between Bulgaria and Turkey. Labrador Luna, springer spaniel Callie, and a springer-cocker spaniel mix named Sprocket will detect small boat equipment that trafficking gangs attempt to sneak into Europe. They are trained by the National Crime Agency (NCA) to sniff out the rubber of people smugglers' dinghies hidden in lorries.
Success Builds on Prior Interceptions
The dogs hope to build on the success of the UK-trained German short-haired pointer Adele, who helped Bulgarian police intercept 48kg of cocaine at the border last week. Minister for Europe, Stephen Doughty, announced the new support during meetings in Sofia on Thursday with the new Bulgarian Government, which took up office last week.
Mr Doughty said: "Our cooperation with Bulgaria is delivering real results, stopping threats long before they reach the UK. Last year alone, our joint work intercepted 91 boats, with the potential to transport thousands of people in dangerous journeys across the Channel. That's why I'm in Sofia, to expand that partnership and ensure European security remains at the heart of our work with the new Bulgarian government."
UK-Bulgaria Partnership Expands
While in Sofia, Mr Doughty saw first-hand the work of Bulgarian law enforcement. Alongside sniffer dogs, the UK has provided drones to track illegal migrants crossing through Bulgaria's mountainous terrain, and vehicle scanning equipment to uncover concealed contraband and people illegally trafficked in vehicles crossing the border. With its southern border one of the busiest entry points into the EU, Bulgaria already seizes more small boats than any other country. Alongside Romania, the Balkan country became the most recent state to join the EU's Schengen Area in 2025, which allows people and goods to move freely through Europe without internal border checks.
It comes after Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper secured agreement from 46 European partners to modernise how the European Court of Human Rights handles migration cases, strengthening the UK's ability to take firm action on border security.
International Cooperation Yields Results
The NCA and the Home Office International Operations work with a range of international partners to seize small boat equipment, including Europol, Bulgaria, Belgium, France and Germany. This has seen more than 1,000 boats and engines seized since early 2023. More than 500 were confiscated in 2025 alone. NCA Head of Region, Kenny Dron, said: "Bulgaria is a key partner for the NCA in tackling a range of threats from serious and organised crime, and we have an extremely positive relationship with our law enforcement colleagues there, regularly sharing intelligence and mounting joint operations. I'm delighted we are able to expand our work with them, and the deployment of these new dogs will further increase our ability to disrupt the criminal networks threatening the security of both of our nations."
Gang Leader Jailed
Among gang leaders who have used the smuggling route was Hewa Rahimpur, 32, who was jailed in Belgium for 11 years. Rahimpur headed one of the largest human trafficking gangs involved in smuggling people across the English Channel. Police believe he masterminded a ring that brought 10,000 people to the UK in small boats. Rahimpur arrived in Britain in 2016 and claimed asylum, saying that as an Iranian Kurd he would face persecution at home. He was allowed to stay in 2020. The gangmaster set up a barber's shop in London but then used Britain as a base for a far-reaching criminal operation. He led a group that sourced boats, engines and life-jackets for migrant crossings. They bought engines and parts from Turkey and China and transported them through Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands.
