Man jailed for smuggling unskilled workers into Finland with forged documents

A Pakistani man has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison for organising the illegal entry of 50 Pakistani nationals into Finland using falsified documents, the Helsinki Court of Appeal ruled.

Jiwan Mall arranged or attempted to arrange work-based residence permits for the individuals between July 2024 and January 2025, according to the court. Eleven people entered Finland under the fraudulent permits, while 39 attempts remained at the planning stage.

The applications relied on forged qualifications and employment certificates for welding, pipework, and metalwork, with contracts tied to a Lithuanian subcontractor at Meyer Turku shipyard. The company later confirmed the workers, bar one, were unskilled and the documents appeared fake.

Mall, who operated with a Pakistani consultancy, played a central role in creating false documents and providing misleading information. The scheme was systematic and involved an organised criminal group, the court found.

Fees for the service ranged from €1,000 to €3,000 per person, depending on factors such as family size. The court estimated total criminal proceeds at €50,000, with Mall’s share at €34,000—a lower figure than the €90,000 previously ruled by the Itä-Uusimaa District Court, which had sentenced him to three years in prison.

The case was uncovered in October 2024 at Helsinki Airport when a man detained during border control admitted to purchasing his residence permit from a Pakistani company. The investigation was led by the Finnish Border Guard’s Gulf of Finland maritime unit.

An appeal to the Supreme Court is possible.