0:00:02 > 0:00:04- Come on! - On the run...
0:00:04 > 0:00:06- Get back here! - ..and over here.
0:00:06 > 0:00:08Hands out now. Hands out!
0:00:08 > 0:00:12When foreign criminals flee their home countries,
0:00:12 > 0:00:14many hide out in the UK.
0:00:14 > 0:00:17- Give me your hands.- But if they think they're safe, they're wrong.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19They know they're wanted.
0:00:19 > 0:00:22A lot of these people are waiting for that knock on the door.
0:00:22 > 0:00:26But the traffic in fugitives isn't all one way.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30Across Europe, there are hundreds of British criminals
0:00:30 > 0:00:33also trying to escape justice,
0:00:33 > 0:00:37..from the sun-drenched Costas, where the villains seek a life of luxury...
0:00:38 > 0:00:40..to the busy streets of the Dutch capital,
0:00:40 > 0:00:43where many continue their life of crime.
0:00:45 > 0:00:48We join the crack teams hunting them down.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51When you take the risk to come to Amsterdam as a criminal,
0:00:51 > 0:00:53there's a high chance that we catch you.
0:00:53 > 0:00:57When it comes to justice, borders are no barrier.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00You're under arrest under the Extradition Act 2003.
0:01:00 > 0:01:04This is how the police take down the fugitives.
0:01:04 > 0:01:05Police officer!
0:01:05 > 0:01:07Both at home and abroad.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11If you're thinking of running, don't.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13We will find you.
0:01:13 > 0:01:15We will bring you back.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25On today's programme,
0:01:25 > 0:01:28police are sure they've caught a drug dealer
0:01:28 > 0:01:30in this chance encounter.
0:01:30 > 0:01:32He's not so convinced.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35- Is that you?- No. - Who are you?- Damian.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38- Have you got any ID with you, Damian?- Yeah.
0:01:38 > 0:01:40It's not, that's you, that is.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45In east London, the Metropolitan Police's extradition team
0:01:45 > 0:01:49are on the hunt for a man with a history of domestic violence.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53Caused a really serious injury in one particular assault.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57It's alleged that he's burnt her with a cigarette stub.
0:01:57 > 0:02:00And how intelligence from the National Crime Agency
0:02:00 > 0:02:04led to the dramatic arrest of this card-playing criminal
0:02:04 > 0:02:06in a Spanish bar.
0:02:06 > 0:02:07Once we knew what league he was playing in,
0:02:07 > 0:02:09what games he was playing in,
0:02:09 > 0:02:11we could work out where he was going to be and at what time.
0:02:15 > 0:02:20London, home to more than 8.5 million people.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23It's also home to the specialist unit whose work it is
0:02:23 > 0:02:26to arrest foreign criminals on the run in the capital.
0:02:27 > 0:02:32Around 40% of the population of London come from other countries.
0:02:32 > 0:02:34Officers from the extradition unit
0:02:34 > 0:02:38capture over 500 foreign fugitives each year.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42But many more are hiding out amongst the city's law-abiding citizens.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44Police, can you open the door, please?
0:02:44 > 0:02:46It's up to the detectives of the extradition unit
0:02:46 > 0:02:50to find those who are wanted by police forces abroad.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53Trying to find people in London
0:02:53 > 0:02:56is searching for a needle in a haystack.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59We have to go and try and find these people
0:02:59 > 0:03:02and it means going from address to address
0:03:02 > 0:03:05and getting up very early in all weathers
0:03:05 > 0:03:06but that's the nature of the work.
0:03:08 > 0:03:10On this early January morning,
0:03:10 > 0:03:13Detective Sergeant Pete Rance and his team
0:03:13 > 0:03:17are looking for a fugitive who describes himself as an evangelist.
0:03:18 > 0:03:22But Lanre Louis Dasaolu has been convicted for fraud in Germany
0:03:22 > 0:03:24and the police there want him back.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28He's basically taken money
0:03:28 > 0:03:31for something that was to be shipped and hasn't shipped it.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34He's arranged for a bus to be shipped and it hasn't been done.
0:03:34 > 0:03:38The second offence, he's used somebody else's credit card
0:03:38 > 0:03:40to pay for a flight
0:03:40 > 0:03:44from Stansted to Stuttgart.
0:03:45 > 0:03:49Dasaolu has almost two years to serve in a German prison
0:03:49 > 0:03:53for fraudulently taking money to ship cars, a lorry
0:03:53 > 0:03:57and a bus to Nigeria, the Gambia and Sierra Leone.
0:03:57 > 0:03:59We're looking for
0:03:59 > 0:04:02all sorts of people for all sorts of offences.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06Those people were from all sorts of backgrounds, all sorts of races,
0:04:06 > 0:04:08all sorts of ethnic backgrounds.
0:04:08 > 0:04:10There is no... There is no...
0:04:12 > 0:04:15..sort of standard face for a fugitive.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19The detectives have discovered that this unusual fugitive
0:04:19 > 0:04:22is due to speak at a religious event in the capital.
0:04:23 > 0:04:26The intelligence that he's in the UK is fairly strong,
0:04:26 > 0:04:30a suggestion that he's going to be involved in a sermon
0:04:30 > 0:04:34or a preaching service at the end of the month.
0:04:34 > 0:04:36We'd rather
0:04:36 > 0:04:38arrest him at his home address
0:04:38 > 0:04:41than impact on a community event like that.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44So, that's the reason for coming here
0:04:44 > 0:04:47at a relatively early hour of the day
0:04:47 > 0:04:50to try and locate him and arrest him.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55Although intelligence has linked this address to the wanted man,
0:04:55 > 0:04:59Pete knows that fugitives often move around to avoid being caught.
0:05:05 > 0:05:09It's the police. Could you open the door, please, madam?
0:05:09 > 0:05:10Thank you.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14- What happened?- Nothing happened. I'm really sorry to trouble you.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17Detective Sergeant Pete Rance from the Met Police.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20I just need to know who lives here. At this address.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22- Is it possible I can come in and speak to you?- Yes.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25Thank you very much. I've got a colleague with me, is that OK?
0:05:25 > 0:05:28- Yeah.- But after a brief chat with the woman inside,
0:05:28 > 0:05:33the team realise they won't be arresting the Bible-loving fraudster today.
0:05:33 > 0:05:35- Take care. Bye-bye.- Bye.
0:05:35 > 0:05:39So, we've gone in, established their identities,
0:05:39 > 0:05:42we saw she was quite happy for us to come in and speak to her.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46And the fella we're looking for is not there, so we've left it at that.
0:05:46 > 0:05:49We'll move on to our next inquiry now.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51They won't be giving up.
0:05:51 > 0:05:55But the hunt for Dasaolu will have to wait for fresh intelligence.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01And with hundreds of wanted men and women at large in the capital,
0:06:01 > 0:06:04there's no time to waste for this team of detectives.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09Later, Pete searches for a man wanted by Belgian police
0:06:09 > 0:06:13for particularly nasty domestic violence offences.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16He's burnt her with a cigarette stub,
0:06:16 > 0:06:19so it gives you a flavour of the type of violence
0:06:19 > 0:06:21that was being used against this lady.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31For British fugitives on the run,
0:06:31 > 0:06:33the Costa Blanca, packed with tourists,
0:06:33 > 0:06:36is an ideal place to hide from the law.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42In the seaside resort of Calpe, 40 miles north of Alicante,
0:06:42 > 0:06:46pubs and cafes welcome British customers with open arms.
0:06:51 > 0:06:56In one popular bar, as night fell on a September evening in 2014,
0:06:56 > 0:07:00a group of British expats were meeting up for a card game.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03One of the players really was using his poker face.
0:07:06 > 0:07:08He was trying to ask for another beer.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12So, I told him, "This is serious stuff, so stop drinking."
0:07:13 > 0:07:18The man gambling with his freedom was cocaine smuggler Robert Knight.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22He'd fled to Spain to escape a long stint in a British jail
0:07:22 > 0:07:24six years earlier.
0:07:26 > 0:07:30Knight was part of an organised gang of smugglers based in Birmingham.
0:07:32 > 0:07:37Back in early 2008, West Midlands Police were on their trail.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42They knew the criminals had imported two million cigarettes
0:07:42 > 0:07:46and large quantities of drugs worth almost £1 million into the UK.
0:07:48 > 0:07:51We had intelligence in relation to all the members
0:07:51 > 0:07:53of this organised crime group.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55He was the one with the contacts,
0:07:55 > 0:07:57he was the one facilitating drugs.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01Knight and his gang had devised a clever way of getting drugs
0:08:01 > 0:08:05past airport security and into the UK.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09Cocaine was coming in library books from South America
0:08:09 > 0:08:12and I think we recovered seven kilos of cocaine.
0:08:12 > 0:08:14The more we investigated,
0:08:14 > 0:08:17the more we realised that Rob Knight was the one that was
0:08:17 > 0:08:20really making sure that everybody knew what they were doing,
0:08:20 > 0:08:24he was making sure that contacts abroad were paid,
0:08:24 > 0:08:28and it was massively important to us to find him and arrest him.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34Undercover officers spent weeks watching Knight's every move,
0:08:34 > 0:08:38photographing him outside the shop used to store his contraband.
0:08:39 > 0:08:45Then they seized a shipment of cocaine worth £300,000 at Heathrow.
0:08:45 > 0:08:47It was time to make an arrest.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49But the move came too late.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52We went to his place of work and we must have missed him
0:08:52 > 0:08:54by about literally two minutes.
0:08:54 > 0:08:59We know that he left literally as a police vehicle was pulling up.
0:08:59 > 0:09:00Inside the shop,
0:09:00 > 0:09:04they found half a million pounds' worth of illegal tobacco.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07We found two million cigarettes.
0:09:07 > 0:09:10They were bringing it in floor tiling rolls,
0:09:10 > 0:09:12which were hollow in the middle.
0:09:14 > 0:09:16But there was no sign of Robert Knight,
0:09:16 > 0:09:20the brains behind the huge smuggling racket.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22It seemed he could have fled to Spain.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27We thought he was in the region of Estepona in Spain.
0:09:27 > 0:09:30We knew that he had been seen there by different people
0:09:30 > 0:09:32who'd put reports in.
0:09:32 > 0:09:34And we knew from previous intelligence
0:09:34 > 0:09:37he knew that area and because of the expat community there,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40he could fit in there without really showing out.
0:09:40 > 0:09:44For five years, Knight evaded capture.
0:09:44 > 0:09:48Then in 2013, police appealed for the public's help.
0:09:50 > 0:09:53Number seven tonight is Robert Mark Knight.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56In Spain too,
0:09:56 > 0:10:00a Crimestoppers campaign on the Costas reminded holiday-makers
0:10:00 > 0:10:02that the drug and tobacco smuggler
0:10:02 > 0:10:05was one of the UK's most wanted fugitives.
0:10:08 > 0:10:10But would the new appeal lead to the information
0:10:10 > 0:10:13police needed to find him?
0:10:13 > 0:10:15It was unfinished business for us.
0:10:15 > 0:10:17And we know that every time we'd make inquiries
0:10:17 > 0:10:19with his family and friends,
0:10:19 > 0:10:22they were literally gloating that you'll never get hold of him,
0:10:22 > 0:10:24he's left the country.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28And they were sort of proud of the fact that he had avoided justice.
0:10:35 > 0:10:39Spain has been a hiding place for British fugitives for decades.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Our story of the hour tonight is about criminals
0:10:43 > 0:10:45who seem to be getting away scot-free,
0:10:45 > 0:10:48beyond our reach, in sunny Spain.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51So, how did this Costa Del Crime come about?
0:10:52 > 0:10:55Roy Ramm is a former commander of specialist operations
0:10:55 > 0:10:57at New Scotland Yard.
0:10:57 > 0:11:01There had been an extradition treaty in place for donkey's years
0:11:01 > 0:11:04and in 1978, that collapsed. It fell apart.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07There was no way to get somebody back from Spain
0:11:07 > 0:11:09who was wanted in the UK.
0:11:09 > 0:11:14By the early 1980s, notorious gangsters like Robert Chatwin,
0:11:14 > 0:11:18a well-known jewel thief, were taking advantage of the situation,
0:11:18 > 0:11:20knowing they were untouchable.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23The reason I came to Spain was that
0:11:23 > 0:11:25firstly, it's quite a pleasant, warm country,
0:11:25 > 0:11:27secondly, it's the nearest country to England
0:11:27 > 0:11:29with no extradition treaty.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31Spain became a refuge for criminals,
0:11:31 > 0:11:34an absolute haven for serious and organised criminals.
0:11:34 > 0:11:37There are reported to be more than 50 wanted criminals
0:11:37 > 0:11:40living safely in Spain, mostly on the Costa Del Sol.
0:11:40 > 0:11:44Many of them have invested in big business and big villas there.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47It was very frustrating for particularly the detectives
0:11:47 > 0:11:51at New Scotland Yard to see people who were really suspected
0:11:51 > 0:11:54to have been involved in really major crimes
0:11:54 > 0:11:57spending hundreds of thousands of pounds
0:11:57 > 0:11:58and they could buy the villas,
0:11:58 > 0:12:01they could buy the fast cars, the Ferraris.
0:12:01 > 0:12:06It was sex and drugs and rock and roll, writ large for UK villains.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09The people that should have been standing trial in the Crown Courts
0:12:09 > 0:12:11and at the Old Bailey
0:12:11 > 0:12:14really sticking two fingers up to the coppers.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17We were also concerned for the perception.
0:12:17 > 0:12:19We didn't want the public in Europe
0:12:19 > 0:12:24to think that our biggest export to Spain was serious criminals.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27That perception soon spread.
0:12:27 > 0:12:31When a Spanish newspaper highlighted just how many British criminals
0:12:31 > 0:12:33were hiding out on the Costa Del Sol,
0:12:33 > 0:12:37politicians were put under pressure to re-establish the treaty
0:12:37 > 0:12:39and bring those fugitives back home.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44How much of a priority has it been in the last few months
0:12:44 > 0:12:47or years to get this treaty re-established?
0:12:47 > 0:12:49It is a question of striking a balance
0:12:49 > 0:12:53between the requirements of British law, the freedom of British people
0:12:53 > 0:12:54and the requirements of Spanish law.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57There was no extradition in place but we didn't give up,
0:12:57 > 0:13:00so there were all kinds of attempts made with the help of government
0:13:00 > 0:13:02to try and get these people back.
0:13:02 > 0:13:05So, when passports were expiring,
0:13:05 > 0:13:09we were kind of making sure that they had to come back to the UK
0:13:09 > 0:13:11to renew their passports.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14Then, in 1985, there was a breakthrough.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16From today, criminals on the run from Britain
0:13:16 > 0:13:18will no longer be safe in Spain.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21Ministers from both countries have signed a new extradition treaty
0:13:21 > 0:13:25which should stop Spain being used as a safe and often luxurious haven.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27When the treaty was re-established,
0:13:27 > 0:13:30we were kind of hopeful that that was it,
0:13:30 > 0:13:32that a switch was going to be flicked and we could get them back,
0:13:32 > 0:13:34but it wasn't like that.
0:13:34 > 0:13:38In fact, it would take many more years of negotiation
0:13:38 > 0:13:40before an effective partnership
0:13:40 > 0:13:44between British and Spanish police forces could take effect,
0:13:44 > 0:13:47finally ending the fugitives' free-for-all.
0:13:53 > 0:13:57Today, forces across Europe work closely together
0:13:57 > 0:14:00in the fight to bring those who flee across borders to justice.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06DS Pete Rance and his colleague DC Jamie Darby
0:14:06 > 0:14:08are out on the road in south-west London,
0:14:08 > 0:14:10serving extradition warrants.
0:14:10 > 0:14:16The role is to find fugitives that are wanted in overseas countries
0:14:16 > 0:14:20for crimes they're either accused of or convicted of.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22Their next target tonight
0:14:22 > 0:14:26is a man convicted of domestic violence offences in Belgium.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28He's caused a really serious injury.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33And reading the warrant,
0:14:33 > 0:14:35it's alleged
0:14:35 > 0:14:40that it's systematic abuse over a period of six years
0:14:40 > 0:14:43between 2002 and 2008.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45In one particular assault,
0:14:45 > 0:14:50it's alleged that he's burnt her with a cigarette stub.
0:14:50 > 0:14:55So, that gives you a flavour of the type of violence
0:14:55 > 0:14:59that was being, or alleged to have been, used against this lady.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Pete and Jamie scope out the neighbourhood,
0:15:03 > 0:15:07trying to work out if the fugitive is in before knocking on the door.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15Hello, sorry to trouble you. From the police.
0:15:15 > 0:15:17Just need to know who lives at this address. It's probably...
0:15:17 > 0:15:20- No speak English. - No speak English, OK.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22Hello, we just need to know who lives at this address.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24What's your family name?
0:15:24 > 0:15:26Never absolutely certain when you turn up
0:15:26 > 0:15:27that people are either going to be in
0:15:27 > 0:15:29or indeed that they haven't moved on.
0:15:29 > 0:15:32So, it's about approaching it, making an approach,
0:15:32 > 0:15:34speaking to the people inside,
0:15:34 > 0:15:36and trying to ascertain who does live there.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Sorry to trouble you. OK, thank you. Bye-bye.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42The family confirm to Pete that this is the home
0:15:42 > 0:15:44of the man they're after.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47He's gone to the shops. He'll be back in half an hour.
0:15:47 > 0:15:50They've just missed him by a matter of minutes.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52The detectives are left with little choice
0:15:52 > 0:15:55but to wait and see if he comes back.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59She obviously knows the police have been round now.
0:15:59 > 0:16:01If he is waiting for the knock on the door
0:16:01 > 0:16:06and she knows he's waiting for the knock on the door, for this...
0:16:06 > 0:16:09for this matter, some years ago now in Belgium,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12then it's likely she's going to call him
0:16:12 > 0:16:15and tell him that the police have been to the address.
0:16:15 > 0:16:19Hopefully, when we've spoken to her and her sons,
0:16:19 > 0:16:24we've been suitably sort of vague, for want of a better description,
0:16:24 > 0:16:28to not raise the alarm that we're there to arrest him.
0:16:30 > 0:16:32Just as they're about to give up and leave,
0:16:32 > 0:16:35a man comes up and knocks on Pete's window.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39Let me just park up. We'll come and talk to you, don't worry.
0:16:39 > 0:16:40This is our man.
0:16:41 > 0:16:43That's how your luck can go.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45I tell you what, come and sit in the back of the car.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47Jump on there. Have you got some ID, have you?
0:16:47 > 0:16:49- Yes, yes.- I'm Jamie Darby.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52I'm a DC from the extradition unit up at New Scotland Yard.
0:16:52 > 0:16:53Unfortunately for you,
0:16:53 > 0:16:56you're under arrest under a European Arrest Warrant for Belgium,
0:16:56 > 0:16:58- for an alleged assault, OK? - You're not in trouble in the UK.
0:16:58 > 0:17:00- No, sir.- No problem here.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02But there's a warrant been issued in Belgium
0:17:02 > 0:17:04and Belgium have asked us to execute the warrant,
0:17:04 > 0:17:06- it's a European Arrest Warrant. - Yes, but I...- So, listen.
0:17:06 > 0:17:08So, you have to go to court in London.
0:17:08 > 0:17:13The man protests that his family life is now a happy one.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16But that won't wash when he hasn't finished doing time
0:17:16 > 0:17:19for the domestic violence offences in his past.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24As the officers escort him into his flat to collect his passport,
0:17:24 > 0:17:26Pete's French comes in handy.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28..laisse un message...
0:17:28 > 0:17:32- Tu peux telephoner Charlie dans la voiture.- Merci.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35My phone is going to die.
0:17:35 > 0:17:39- OK.- He already come back...- Are you going to leave your phone here?
0:17:39 > 0:17:43Il ne va pas a l'ecole demain. Tu l'amenes avec toi.
0:17:43 > 0:17:45Don't go to the school tomorrow.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48After saying goodbye to his wife and children,
0:17:48 > 0:17:50the fugitive is taken into custody.
0:17:52 > 0:17:55It sums up what police work can be like.
0:17:55 > 0:17:57You know, you think you've missed it.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00I was completely prepared to come away from that address,
0:18:00 > 0:18:03and, you know, regroup and have a look at it for another day,
0:18:03 > 0:18:05and the next thing you know,
0:18:05 > 0:18:08he's knocking on the window of the car, offering himself up.
0:18:08 > 0:18:10So, it's completely like that, you know.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14One day... One day, you get a bit of luck and other days,
0:18:14 > 0:18:17you could sit there for hours and he wouldn't come back
0:18:17 > 0:18:19and it's just par for the course, really.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30Every November, 26 police forces across the UK
0:18:30 > 0:18:33take part in a week-long operation,
0:18:33 > 0:18:37aimed at tackling foreign offenders on Britain's roads.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39Yeah, that's copied...
0:18:39 > 0:18:42Stopping and searching vehicles registered abroad
0:18:42 > 0:18:46and checking that foreign workers have the appropriate permits
0:18:46 > 0:18:48is part of the work.
0:18:48 > 0:18:50Madam, what nationality are you?
0:18:50 > 0:18:53But the operation also focuses on tracking down men and women
0:18:53 > 0:18:57on the run after committing crimes abroad.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01This week, PCs Danny Evans and Karl Lacey are in Worcestershire
0:19:01 > 0:19:04and they have a long list of fugitives to find.
0:19:06 > 0:19:09First up is Przemyslaw Wojciechowski.
0:19:09 > 0:19:13The 33-year-old drug dealer has already been sentenced
0:19:13 > 0:19:15to two years in prison back in Poland.
0:19:15 > 0:19:17When was the offence?
0:19:19 > 0:19:21It's been about seven... It's been a while ago.
0:19:21 > 0:19:23How long's he been in the country?
0:19:23 > 0:19:24Quite a while.
0:19:25 > 0:19:27Just looking at a bit of history
0:19:27 > 0:19:29we've got with this gentleman from this warrant,
0:19:29 > 0:19:32that we've received from Poland,
0:19:32 > 0:19:38the drug supply has been over a year or so, in 2006, 2007,
0:19:38 > 0:19:43at least sort of eight to ten separate offences of drug supply
0:19:43 > 0:19:48over that period of time, so obviously, that's why the offence
0:19:48 > 0:19:50is so severe, that he's been sought after.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53The team have an address for the man.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56They're aiming to sneak up on it, so he doesn't see them coming.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00A plainclothes officer leads them to the right flat.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09The drug dealer has a two-year prison sentence
0:20:09 > 0:20:11waiting for him back in Poland.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14PC Matt Britton is first to approach the door.
0:20:24 > 0:20:25- Hello.- Hello.- It's the police.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27Can we just come and have a quick chat with you?
0:20:27 > 0:20:30- It's nothing to worry about. - Yeah.- Are you here alone today?
0:20:30 > 0:20:33- No, with my partner. - What's your partner's name?
0:20:33 > 0:20:36- Przemy.- Przemy, right, is his...?
0:20:36 > 0:20:39What's his last name?
0:20:39 > 0:20:41Wojciechowski.
0:20:41 > 0:20:42Is he here now, is he?
0:20:42 > 0:20:46He's at the shop at the moment but he's coming here.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49- He's coming back?- Yeah. - Ah, right. OK.
0:20:49 > 0:20:54Wojciechowski does live here but has popped out to the local supermarket.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56You know, if this guy wanted to get away from us...
0:20:58 > 0:21:00..quite easily, a phone call could have gone in
0:21:00 > 0:21:03when Matt and Jim were at the premises, by his partner,
0:21:03 > 0:21:06to say, "Don't come back, the police are here."
0:21:06 > 0:21:08- Did he walk to the shop?- No.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11- Did he go in his car?- Yes. - Right, OK. When will he be back?
0:21:11 > 0:21:13- Soon.- Soon.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15OK. What car?
0:21:15 > 0:21:17- What car has he got? - It's a Mazda3.
0:21:17 > 0:21:19Do you know the number plate?
0:21:19 > 0:21:21While Matt waits with Wojciechowski's partner,
0:21:21 > 0:21:26Sgt Dean Carswell and the plainclothes police officer set off
0:21:26 > 0:21:30towards the supermarket in an attempt to intercept him.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33But a chance encounter saves them a journey.
0:21:33 > 0:21:34Sir, just have a quick word.
0:21:36 > 0:21:38- Is that you?- No.- Who are you?
0:21:38 > 0:21:42- Damian.- Damian.- Have you got any ID with you, Damian?- Yeah.
0:21:42 > 0:21:46- It's not, that's you, that is. - That's me, yeah.
0:21:46 > 0:21:47Just stand there a second for me.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54He's just gone to the shop to get a loaf of bread,
0:21:54 > 0:21:56which is something he probably does every morning,
0:21:56 > 0:22:00and he's been met by us in the corridor.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02Have you got anything in your pockets that you shouldn't have?
0:22:02 > 0:22:05- No, no.- Any knives, any weapons? - No.- Anything else?
0:22:05 > 0:22:07- Put your hands to the side. - Let me take your bread off you.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09- Yeah.- I'm not going to eat it.
0:22:09 > 0:22:10'We were all called round.'
0:22:10 > 0:22:14I came round, identified the male from the warrant,
0:22:14 > 0:22:15asked him his name, and again,
0:22:15 > 0:22:17he was arrested immediately for the warrant.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20- He's been searched. - OK, you're under arrest
0:22:20 > 0:22:22under the Extradition Act 2003.
0:22:22 > 0:22:23You do not have to say anything
0:22:23 > 0:22:26but anything you do say may be given in evidence.
0:22:27 > 0:22:30- Can you confirm your name for me? - Yeah, that's the name.
0:22:30 > 0:22:32- Your name, can you tell me, please?- Wojciechowski.
0:22:32 > 0:22:37- My missus knows about it, yes? - Yeah.- OK. So, thank you.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40- Yes.- I understand it's a bit of a shock, OK?- Yeah.
0:22:42 > 0:22:44He was quite chatty up until that point.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46I think he mentioned something about the fact
0:22:46 > 0:22:48that he knew this was coming.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50OK, you've got everything you need, sir?
0:22:52 > 0:22:54Can I say goodbye to my girlfriend?
0:22:54 > 0:22:56That's it? Please?
0:22:58 > 0:23:00- Just you wait here. We'll bring her down, OK?- Yeah.
0:23:02 > 0:23:04It wasn't until he saw his daughter,
0:23:04 > 0:23:08I think it really hit home, didn't it? He got emotional, he got upset.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13His time on the run over,
0:23:13 > 0:23:16Wojciechowski realises that his failure to face up
0:23:16 > 0:23:20to his criminal past now means his family will be left on their own.
0:23:22 > 0:23:25It's only right when somebody's getting arrested and possibly
0:23:25 > 0:23:28sent back to their country to serve a long sentence
0:23:28 > 0:23:30that they're allowed to say goodbye to their loved ones.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35- The thing is...- Yeah.- ..it's going to get dealt with now, isn't it?
0:23:35 > 0:23:38- You don't have to hide any more. - Yeah, exactly.- OK.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41I know it's not any good at the moment.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47As you've seen from his reaction, he's known about this for a while.
0:23:47 > 0:23:49And his time has come today.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52His own admission, he said he should have sorted it out
0:23:52 > 0:23:55a while ago and he hasn't. But, yeah, it's been a bit of a shock
0:23:55 > 0:23:57that we've arrived at his address today.
0:23:57 > 0:24:00- This is a copy of the extradition notice.- Yeah.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03This is a copy of the warrant against you.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06- It's in both English and Polish.- Yeah, OK.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09You get to keep that, but that's for you there.
0:24:09 > 0:24:11- Hold on to that because that's for you to keep, all right?- OK.
0:24:11 > 0:24:15Wojciechowski's past as a dealer in amphetamines back in Poland
0:24:15 > 0:24:18has finally caught up with him.
0:24:18 > 0:24:20He'll be taken to London for his extradition hearing.
0:24:23 > 0:24:25He's put himself in that situation.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27You know, this has happened for a while
0:24:27 > 0:24:30and he's known that he could have got it sorted out a long time ago.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32The only blessing is maybe that he can get it dealt with now
0:24:32 > 0:24:36and before his daughter is old enough to find out what's going on.
0:24:36 > 0:24:38Maybe won't remember any of this at all.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47For decades, the Spanish seaside
0:24:47 > 0:24:50has been a haven for British criminals on the run.
0:24:50 > 0:24:5330 years ago, the first extradition treaty
0:24:53 > 0:24:56between the UK and Spain was agreed.
0:24:56 > 0:24:58But it didn't solve the problem.
0:24:59 > 0:25:01There's about a quarter of a million Brits in Spain.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04There are an awful lot of English pubs, English bars,
0:25:04 > 0:25:08you don't have to speak Spanish to live comfortably on the Costa.
0:25:08 > 0:25:12The issue continued to be a massive source of frustration
0:25:12 > 0:25:14for British authorities.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17We're talking about an average of a year to get someone extradited,
0:25:17 > 0:25:19which obviously causes havoc,
0:25:19 > 0:25:23not only to the victims and those who have suffered
0:25:23 > 0:25:26but also in terms of operating the judicial system.
0:25:26 > 0:25:31With both politicians and police struggling to get any results,
0:25:31 > 0:25:35help came from an unexpected source. The media.
0:25:35 > 0:25:39I take my hat off to people like Roger Cook and other journalists
0:25:39 > 0:25:42who went down to the Costa and exposed this criminal lifestyle,
0:25:42 > 0:25:45because they got a fairly hostile reception.
0:25:45 > 0:25:46Mr Roger Cook!
0:25:48 > 0:25:52But what they did with their reports and with their documentaries
0:25:52 > 0:25:55was to bring this issue right to Westminster
0:25:55 > 0:26:00on the doorstep of the politicians and it was an embarrassment.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03The British politicians were seeing what was going on down there
0:26:03 > 0:26:06and I think it added impetus to their efforts to try
0:26:06 > 0:26:09and re-establish diplomatic relationships
0:26:09 > 0:26:11and get a mechanism to get these people back.
0:26:11 > 0:26:14The media spotlight and award-winning journalism
0:26:14 > 0:26:18may have been enough to persuade some criminals to head for home.
0:26:18 > 0:26:23For others, it was the discovery that Spain's sun, sea and sand
0:26:23 > 0:26:25couldn't replace family and friends.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29You know, living away from the UK, when your home, your family,
0:26:29 > 0:26:33your lifestyle's here is not as easy as it seems.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37Some of the criminals who had been fugitives in Spain
0:26:37 > 0:26:40actually came back under their own steam, eventually.
0:26:40 > 0:26:42Then in 2001,
0:26:42 > 0:26:45a treaty was signed which meant whether they wanted to or not,
0:26:45 > 0:26:48criminals on the Costas would be coming home.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52The point of all this is to plug the legal loopholes
0:26:52 > 0:26:56and to reduce the time it takes to extradite suspects
0:26:56 > 0:26:58to as little as three weeks.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01But even with the treaty in place,
0:27:01 > 0:27:05Costa Del Crime's long history means Spain remains
0:27:05 > 0:27:08a favourite destination for criminals on the run.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12It's still sunny and warm and a pleasant place to be.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15There are still a lot of expat Brits around.
0:27:15 > 0:27:18And of course, there are criminal opportunities there.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22Yes, extradition is now possible but there is also a kind of a network,
0:27:22 > 0:27:27a structure on the Costa, that they can hide away in for some time.
0:27:27 > 0:27:30So, the Costa still attracts British fugitives.
0:27:38 > 0:27:43One of those criminals was notorious cocaine smuggler Robert Knight.
0:27:43 > 0:27:47He fled the UK in April 2008,
0:27:47 > 0:27:51swapping his life as the mastermind behind a gang of drug smugglers
0:27:51 > 0:27:52for a life on the run.
0:27:55 > 0:27:56When he fled the country,
0:27:56 > 0:28:00the National Crime Agency joined in the search.
0:28:00 > 0:28:02With Rob Knight, we thought pretty early on
0:28:02 > 0:28:04that he was going to be in Spain.
0:28:04 > 0:28:06He had quite a lot of links out in Spain.
0:28:06 > 0:28:09So, we initially started looking in that area.
0:28:10 > 0:28:13He was on the run for a number of years in the end,
0:28:13 > 0:28:14which can often be the case.
0:28:14 > 0:28:16Even though you secure a European Arrest Warrant,
0:28:16 > 0:28:18it doesn't mean we arrest people instantly.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21But it doesn't mean we stop looking either.
0:28:21 > 0:28:25So, for Rob Knight, he had links to Dubai, to Thailand, to South Africa,
0:28:25 > 0:28:27and obviously, every one of those links
0:28:27 > 0:28:29has to be looked into and investigated.
0:28:29 > 0:28:30But even after all that,
0:28:30 > 0:28:34even when we looked with these other countries, considered other options,
0:28:34 > 0:28:36it all came back to pointing back towards Spain.
0:28:38 > 0:28:43A fresh appeal at home and abroad in 2013 threw up new leads.
0:28:46 > 0:28:50We had quite good intelligence as to around a specific location
0:28:50 > 0:28:52where you started to get a feeling and suggestions
0:28:52 > 0:28:54that he was around the Benidorm area,
0:28:54 > 0:28:56that he was perhaps frequenting bars around there
0:28:56 > 0:28:58and that his face was known
0:28:58 > 0:29:00and we were getting intelligence that he was there.
0:29:00 > 0:29:03So, we could obviously start to focus in on that.
0:29:03 > 0:29:06So, the process would be once we had an idea of where he was,
0:29:06 > 0:29:08we would feed that in to the Spanish
0:29:08 > 0:29:11and then they would look to progress the intelligence.
0:29:11 > 0:29:14With the European Arrest Warrant now in place,
0:29:14 > 0:29:19the Spanish national police's fugitive unit could join the search.
0:29:19 > 0:29:23They followed up on information linking Knight to Benidorm,
0:29:23 > 0:29:26a popular haunt for Brits on the run.
0:29:26 > 0:29:29They come to Benidorm for bars, they play cards here,
0:29:29 > 0:29:32just watch football on television, and things like that.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35We thought Robert Knight was living here in Benidorm,
0:29:35 > 0:29:37so we spent here about two weeks.
0:29:37 > 0:29:41We found out that he had been identified by the local police here,
0:29:41 > 0:29:43driving a motorcycle.
0:29:43 > 0:29:45At that time, he was using a false identity.
0:29:47 > 0:29:49Armed with the knowledge that Robert Knight
0:29:49 > 0:29:51was using someone else's name,
0:29:51 > 0:29:55Olga and her UK colleagues were hopeful of an arrest.
0:29:56 > 0:29:58He was on a false passport,
0:29:58 > 0:30:01so he may have been able to move around European countries
0:30:01 > 0:30:02on that passport.
0:30:02 > 0:30:05But the main intelligence that we were getting
0:30:05 > 0:30:07was that he was settled in Spain,
0:30:07 > 0:30:10that he visited certain bars,
0:30:10 > 0:30:12he was happy there because of the expat community
0:30:12 > 0:30:15and he fitted in pretty nicely there.
0:30:15 > 0:30:19But despite information that Knight had been in Benidorm,
0:30:19 > 0:30:21by the time Olga arrived there to arrest him,
0:30:21 > 0:30:24he seemed to have disappeared.
0:30:24 > 0:30:27Two guys told us, "OK, we recognise him, he was here,
0:30:27 > 0:30:31"but he left this place, like, two months ago."
0:30:31 > 0:30:33Or something like that.
0:30:33 > 0:30:36Picking up the trail again proved difficult.
0:30:37 > 0:30:40It took a few months to actually nail down exactly
0:30:40 > 0:30:42where we thought he was in Alicante.
0:30:42 > 0:30:45But thanks to some excellent work from the Spanish,
0:30:45 > 0:30:48they did eventually secure one bar where we became pretty sure
0:30:48 > 0:30:50that he frequented there quite regularly.
0:30:52 > 0:30:54Olga then received a useful lead
0:30:54 > 0:30:57that would help her team spot Knight.
0:30:58 > 0:31:00They told us he was riding a bicycle.
0:31:00 > 0:31:04It was like a black bicycle with white wheels.
0:31:04 > 0:31:06So, it was kind of a weird bicycle.
0:31:06 > 0:31:08It's not the normal bicycle.
0:31:10 > 0:31:12And back at the National Crime Agency,
0:31:12 > 0:31:15officers also received some new information.
0:31:15 > 0:31:18An intelligence source in Spain told them that Knight
0:31:18 > 0:31:22was now a keen player on the Costa's poker circuit.
0:31:22 > 0:31:24The fact that he was playing poker was great.
0:31:24 > 0:31:26It gave us an idea that he was on a certain circuit,
0:31:26 > 0:31:29that he would be cropping up in potentially certain bars.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32But it wasn't just that. It was that once we knew what league
0:31:32 > 0:31:34he was playing in, what games he was playing in,
0:31:34 > 0:31:37we could work out where he was going to be and at what time.
0:31:38 > 0:31:39It was a big breakthrough.
0:31:39 > 0:31:42Now police knew about Knight's gaming habits,
0:31:42 > 0:31:44it seemed the chips were finally down
0:31:44 > 0:31:47for one of the UK's most wanted fugitives.
0:31:53 > 0:31:55In south-west London,
0:31:55 > 0:31:59DS Pete Rance and DC Jamie Darby have arrested a man
0:31:59 > 0:32:02wanted by Belgian police.
0:32:02 > 0:32:05- Jump on there. You've got some ID, have you?- Yes, yes.
0:32:08 > 0:32:11He fled the country part way through a prison sentence
0:32:11 > 0:32:13- for assaulting his wife.- Understood.
0:32:13 > 0:32:16- You're not in trouble in the UK. - No, sir.
0:32:16 > 0:32:20But there's a warrant been issued in Belgium and Belgium have asked us
0:32:20 > 0:32:22to execute the warrant, it's a European Arrest Warrant.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25- Yeah, but...- OK, so, listen, so you have to go to court in London.
0:32:25 > 0:32:29If Pete doesn't get his man in front of a judge as soon as possible,
0:32:29 > 0:32:31the case could be thrown out.
0:32:32 > 0:32:35They need to take him to Westminster Magistrates' Court
0:32:35 > 0:32:36first thing in the morning
0:32:36 > 0:32:39because it's the only court in England and Wales
0:32:39 > 0:32:41that deals with extradition requests.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46But first, he must be processed at a police station.
0:32:46 > 0:32:48Pete takes him to Charing Cross.
0:32:51 > 0:32:55Charing Cross is a central London police station.
0:32:55 > 0:32:59It works for us because it's very close to the court
0:32:59 > 0:33:04where the people that are going to be taken in extradition proceedings.
0:33:04 > 0:33:06The police want to take your fingerprints,
0:33:06 > 0:33:08photograph and a DNA sample.
0:33:08 > 0:33:10OK, once the samples are taken,
0:33:10 > 0:33:12they can be used for crime investigation purposes
0:33:12 > 0:33:14and to check your identity.
0:33:14 > 0:33:17Take your glasses off for me, please? Cheers.
0:33:17 > 0:33:19Look straight at the camera. Yeah, yeah.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24Jamie and his colleague DC Dave Salmon
0:33:24 > 0:33:26check the arrested man into custody.
0:33:27 > 0:33:28Thank you very much.
0:33:29 > 0:33:32Gathering DNA and adding it to the database
0:33:32 > 0:33:35is an important part of the process.
0:33:35 > 0:33:38We do this with every extradition prisoner.
0:33:38 > 0:33:40It'll be on file
0:33:40 > 0:33:43and it can be compared against the database as well,
0:33:43 > 0:33:47just in case they've been committing other crimes here.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53- Just relax when I roll them, OK? Just relax.- All right.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55Cooperation between European police forces
0:33:55 > 0:33:59and the sharing of this kind of information across borders
0:33:59 > 0:34:03is key to tracking down men and women on the run.
0:34:03 > 0:34:06My job is to ascertain that he was the person that was wanted.
0:34:08 > 0:34:12But as a priority, to make sure that that woman and the children
0:34:12 > 0:34:15were safe and free from any potential harm from him now.
0:34:15 > 0:34:17And I was happy that we'd done that,
0:34:17 > 0:34:21that there was no risk to the kids or to her.
0:34:21 > 0:34:25And then it was about arranging for him to go before the court,
0:34:25 > 0:34:28so that the extradition proceedings could commence.
0:34:28 > 0:34:33The man convicted back in 2009 of domestic violence offences
0:34:33 > 0:34:36in Belgium will spend the night in the cells.
0:34:36 > 0:34:38He'll appear before a judge in the morning.
0:34:43 > 0:34:47No day is the same when you're hunting fugitives.
0:34:47 > 0:34:51It's the job of just six National Crime Agency officers
0:34:51 > 0:34:54to look for wanted Brits right around the world.
0:34:54 > 0:34:57It's one of the things I really like about this job
0:34:57 > 0:34:58because no matter how long you do it,
0:34:58 > 0:35:00there's always something new to learn
0:35:00 > 0:35:04and there's always a new, interesting twist in the cases.
0:35:04 > 0:35:09So, one day, maybe you are looking for a robber in Thailand,
0:35:09 > 0:35:12the next day, a murderer in Brazil,
0:35:12 > 0:35:14the next day, a fraudster in France.
0:35:14 > 0:35:17The unexpected can happen at any time,
0:35:17 > 0:35:21as this former UN investigator knows only too well.
0:35:21 > 0:35:24It's extremely dynamic, so you might sit down in the morning,
0:35:24 > 0:35:27have a very clear plan about what it is that you want to do that day
0:35:27 > 0:35:30and then all of a sudden, there is an urgent situation.
0:35:30 > 0:35:33The workload can be heavy at times.
0:35:33 > 0:35:36So, it is one of the challenges, is prioritising
0:35:36 > 0:35:37many different urgent situations
0:35:37 > 0:35:40and deciding which needs your attention right then.
0:35:40 > 0:35:44Warrants are issued for around 170 of the British fugitives
0:35:44 > 0:35:48who flee abroad to escape justice every year.
0:35:48 > 0:35:51Some cases are more memorable than others.
0:35:51 > 0:35:54And Kimberly remembers her first success.
0:35:54 > 0:35:58I threw absolutely everything I could think of into this case.
0:35:58 > 0:36:00And it was one of those, we didn't have a lot on him,
0:36:00 > 0:36:02we didn't really know where he was.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05And he popped up one day in Portugal.
0:36:05 > 0:36:08And I just got a form through saying he'd been arrested.
0:36:08 > 0:36:10For them, just another subject arrested on the EAW.
0:36:10 > 0:36:12For me, a really big deal.
0:36:13 > 0:36:16The agency has to overcome all sorts of barriers
0:36:16 > 0:36:19to capture and extradite criminals back to Britain.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23Geography, time and language are just a few.
0:36:23 > 0:36:27So, any victory is celebrated by the team.
0:36:27 > 0:36:29We absolutely share in each other's wins,
0:36:29 > 0:36:34because we work so closely together and we help in each other's cases.
0:36:35 > 0:36:37And we are involved in each other's work,
0:36:37 > 0:36:40so when someone gets a really good arrest,
0:36:40 > 0:36:42the whole team, you know, celebrates in it.
0:36:42 > 0:36:46Teamwork can also help deal with the setbacks.
0:36:46 > 0:36:49You might have a really good piece of information come in
0:36:49 > 0:36:52that one of our fugitives is going to be in a location
0:36:52 > 0:36:53at a specific time,
0:36:53 > 0:36:57so you will get the foreign law enforcement set up, ready to go,
0:36:57 > 0:36:58and they might slip the net.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01Or perhaps they didn't travel when you thought that they were going to.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04And it very much feels like a missed opportunity.
0:37:04 > 0:37:06But to be honest, that just spurs you
0:37:06 > 0:37:07to try even harder the next time.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10So, although it can be disappointing
0:37:10 > 0:37:11and it can feel like a little bit of a low,
0:37:11 > 0:37:15it really just motivates us to try even harder the next time.
0:37:21 > 0:37:26In 2014, Olga Lizana, head of the Spanish police's fugitive unit,
0:37:26 > 0:37:29was on the hunt for British criminal Robert Knight.
0:37:30 > 0:37:32Six years earlier,
0:37:32 > 0:37:35he avoided arrest in Birmingham when police closed the net
0:37:35 > 0:37:37on his drug-smuggling gang.
0:37:38 > 0:37:39The more we investigated,
0:37:39 > 0:37:43the more we realised that Rob Knight was the one with the contacts,
0:37:43 > 0:37:45he was the one to facilitate the drugs,
0:37:45 > 0:37:48and he was the one that sort of glued the whole operation together.
0:37:49 > 0:37:53After new appeals and months of painstaking research,
0:37:53 > 0:37:55police were close to capturing the fugitive.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59There will always be one piece of intelligence
0:37:59 > 0:38:01that sort of helps take us over the line.
0:38:01 > 0:38:02For us in the case of Robert Knight,
0:38:02 > 0:38:04it was the fact that he played poker so much
0:38:04 > 0:38:06and that he was so heavily involved in it.
0:38:07 > 0:38:10We got some information about the bar, Saffy's Bar in Calpe.
0:38:12 > 0:38:15They told us "British people play poker here,"
0:38:15 > 0:38:17I think it was every Thursday or something like that.
0:38:17 > 0:38:19So, we move over there.
0:38:19 > 0:38:21Over the past few months,
0:38:21 > 0:38:24Olga had discovered that Robert Knight
0:38:24 > 0:38:27was a keen poker player who rode a distinctive bicycle.
0:38:27 > 0:38:30We didn't see him getting into the bar.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33The first thing we saw was a bicycle outside.
0:38:34 > 0:38:37We decided to wait a little bit to see what was going on.
0:38:37 > 0:38:40We didn't see any people just getting in or out.
0:38:40 > 0:38:43So, we decided to go there and get a drink.
0:38:43 > 0:38:46And sure enough, inside the bar,
0:38:46 > 0:38:49a poker school was just settling in for the evening.
0:38:49 > 0:38:51We have a regular game,
0:38:51 > 0:38:53a friendly game of poker on a Thursday,
0:38:53 > 0:38:55and we were just getting ready for that, really,
0:38:55 > 0:38:58getting all the chips ready and running around for that.
0:38:58 > 0:39:00There was a few people in for the bar.
0:39:00 > 0:39:01Just normal, really.
0:39:01 > 0:39:02We just sat tight.
0:39:02 > 0:39:06We were trying to check if Robert Knight was there or not.
0:39:06 > 0:39:09At the beginning, we were not sure,
0:39:09 > 0:39:13so we were just going in and out to check if it was him or not.
0:39:13 > 0:39:16We were pretty sure, so we decided
0:39:16 > 0:39:19to get into the bar and ask everybody for their documents.
0:39:21 > 0:39:23But even when Olga approached Knight,
0:39:23 > 0:39:25he was still trying to call her bluff.
0:39:26 > 0:39:28When I asked him for the papers,
0:39:28 > 0:39:33he showed me a kind of copy of his passport, but it was not a real one.
0:39:33 > 0:39:35I asked him about his name.
0:39:35 > 0:39:39And he said the name that was on the passport.
0:39:39 > 0:39:41He was not nervous or anything.
0:39:41 > 0:39:45Robert Knight seemed confident his change of appearance
0:39:45 > 0:39:47and fake passport would do the trick,
0:39:47 > 0:39:51even when the odds were stacked against him.
0:39:51 > 0:39:55He thought we were just checking the names or anything,
0:39:55 > 0:39:56so he moved from the table.
0:39:56 > 0:39:59He was asking for another beer, till we just told him,
0:39:59 > 0:40:03"OK, we know you are Robert Knight and you are under arrest."
0:40:03 > 0:40:07But still, it seemed nothing would rattle the one-time drug smuggler.
0:40:07 > 0:40:09He said, "Before you take me, I need to pay me bill."
0:40:09 > 0:40:11So, I was happy, because I'm a Yorkshireman.
0:40:11 > 0:40:14He had a bike outside, chained up, he says, "You can keep the bike."
0:40:14 > 0:40:16I says, "You what?" He says, "You can keep the bike."
0:40:16 > 0:40:19I says, "Why?" He says, "I don't think I'll be back."
0:40:19 > 0:40:24After six years on the run, Knight was finally captured.
0:40:24 > 0:40:27But bizarrely, he didn't seem at all concerned
0:40:27 > 0:40:29that his life as a fugitive had come to an end.
0:40:31 > 0:40:33There is between
0:40:33 > 0:40:3640 and 50 kilometres between Calpe and Alicante,
0:40:36 > 0:40:39we were taking him to the police station in Alicante.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42And he was sleeping in the car.
0:40:42 > 0:40:44To me, it seemed that he was not worried about
0:40:44 > 0:40:46the stuff that was going on.
0:40:46 > 0:40:50He kept saying at the police station that we were wrong,
0:40:50 > 0:40:52"I am another person."
0:40:52 > 0:40:55Robert Knight's bluffing bravado didn't last.
0:40:55 > 0:41:00UK officers were summoned to Alicante to confirm his identity.
0:41:00 > 0:41:04We scrambled pretty quickly to make sure because they were uncertain.
0:41:04 > 0:41:07Obviously, he had forged documents on him and his appearance
0:41:07 > 0:41:09had changed a great deal.
0:41:09 > 0:41:11It felt really good, actually, because when we saw him,
0:41:11 > 0:41:15we arrested him and took him on the airport, he was still denying.
0:41:15 > 0:41:18Firstly, he was still talking to us that he wasn't Rob Knight
0:41:18 > 0:41:21and secondly, he was saying, well, he wasn't on the run.
0:41:21 > 0:41:24He made great pains to say, "Nobody told me I was wanted.
0:41:24 > 0:41:26"I'd been living out there freely."
0:41:26 > 0:41:28In October 2014,
0:41:28 > 0:41:33officers escorted the drug dealer back to the UK to stand trial.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36He didn't realise how much we actually knew about him.
0:41:36 > 0:41:39He didn't realise that we knew how he was writing letters home
0:41:39 > 0:41:41and everything else he was doing.
0:41:41 > 0:41:47For the NCA, it was a great end to six long years of intelligence work.
0:41:47 > 0:41:50The satisfaction of making that phone call
0:41:50 > 0:41:54to the officer in the force who's also lived the case with you,
0:41:54 > 0:41:57being able to make that phone call and say, "We've got them,
0:41:57 > 0:41:59"we've got them arrested, they're in custody,
0:41:59 > 0:42:01"they've got the cuffs on them,"
0:42:01 > 0:42:02that is the best feeling in the job.
0:42:05 > 0:42:08Six years to the day he fled the UK,
0:42:08 > 0:42:12in April 2015, Robert Knight was sentenced to 11 years in prison
0:42:12 > 0:42:16at Birmingham Crown Court for drug smuggling.
0:42:16 > 0:42:21German fraudster and self-proclaimed evangelist Lanre Louis Dasaolu
0:42:21 > 0:42:23was eventually arrested at Heathrow Airport.
0:42:23 > 0:42:27He was extradited back to Germany in November 2016.
0:42:30 > 0:42:33Six months after Met officers arrested the man
0:42:33 > 0:42:37with an outstanding prison sentence to serve for domestic violence,
0:42:37 > 0:42:41the Belgian authorities decided to withdraw the European Arrest Warrant
0:42:41 > 0:42:42they'd issued for him.
0:42:45 > 0:42:48Finally, Przemyslaw Wojciechowski
0:42:48 > 0:42:52was successfully deported back to Poland in June 2016
0:42:52 > 0:42:55to serve the rest of his sentence for supplying drugs.