A FORMER member of the Muslim League and his accomplice have pleaded guilty at Isleworth Crown Court to supplying British passports to failed asylum seekers at Heathrow airport.

The two were arrested during a complex investigation by the National Crime Squad's Immigration Crime Team, specially set up under the government's multi-agency REFLEX initiative to target organised immigration crime.

Irfan Alyas, aka Irfan Irfan, Riswan Waheed and Shabir Ali Hussain, a 36-year-old Pakistani national and illegal immigrant, currently of NFA, but previously of Wembley, London, was charged with conspiracy to make false instruments, namely British passports and pleaded guilty.

Abdul Majid Ali, a 51-year-old Pakistani National who was recently granted British citizenship, of Dawpool Rd, Neasden, was charged with the same thing and also pleaded guilty.

The two men will be sentenced sometime in July when they will also face a financial hearing.

Ali was arrested on September 20 at Heathrow's Terminal 3 as he returned to the UK from a trip to Pakistan. He had obtained British citizenship just days before his arrest. It is believed he was the organiser of the scheme and it was on his behalf that Alyas supplied doctored passports to members of the Asian community who had failed the asylum process.

The Immigration Crime Team located Alyas in Wormwood Scrubbs where he had been remanded in another identity (Shabir Ali Hussai) for the possession of forged British passports. At the time of his arrest, he claimed to speak little English and was interviewed with the aid of an interpreter.

Alyas, the former Joint Secretary for the Youth Wing of the Muslim League in the UK, had applied for asylum in 2002; his claim was rejected.

He admitted being acquainted with Shafiq Mumtaz, who ran a passport factory in Dagenham and is currently serving five years, having been sentenced in July 2003. It is strongly suspected that the passports supplied by Alyas may have been produced in the very same factory.

During the investigation he boasted to an undercover officer that per week, he could supply up to 50 British passports and supporting documentation at a cost of £3,000 - £4,000 each. It is believed he had been engaged in this activity since 2000.

Ali and Alyas each sold a passport to an undercover officer for £3,000 and £3,500 respectively.

Acting DCI Frank Francis of the National Crime Squad's Immigration Crime Team said: "Identity fraud presents a serious global threat and underpins all aspects of organised crime, but in particular the crime groups who smuggle illegal immigrants into the United Kingdom.

"This operation led to one of the largest ever seizures of fraudulent British passports being offered to major towns throughout United Kingdom. Throughout the operation we received excellent support from the UK Passport Service."