Albanian migrants who wanted to avoid deportation were told to pull out their teeth so they could be taken to a hospital where it would be easier to escape.
Two men detained at Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre near Heathrow after arriving in the UK illegally were tipped off in a TikTok call with someone who claimed to have escaped from the unit in 2018.
The migrants are expected to be returned to Albania under the return agreement with the UK, which allows for the repatriation of Albanian citizens who are in the UK illegally.
They were also advised on how to smuggle pliers into the removal centre and what jobs available to detainees would give them the best chance of escape.
However, there is no evidence to suggest the proposed methods would work, although the men have apparently been able to illegally smuggle a mobile phone into the premises before.
Albanian migrants in line for deportation were advised to have their teeth pulled so they could be transferred to a hospital where it would be easier to escape.
Two men were seen speaking on TikTok Live, from a cell at the Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre (above), near Heathrow, with another Albanian who claimed to have escaped from the centre in 2018.
They were also briefed on how to smuggle pliers into the deportation center and what jobs available to detainees would allow the best chance of escape.
In a live TikTok exchange seen by The telegraphFour Albanians, considered convicted criminals, spoke in detail about the layout of Colnbrook and its security measures.
Speaking to cameras using a profile under the name ‘Xhovani’, a man with an account nicknamed ‘The Coup’ advises his fellow countrymen to pull out their teeth so they can be taken to hospital, adding that he escaped in 2018, although there is no public record of an Albanian escaping from the centre that year.
He said this method would allow the men to “disappear” from security cameras.
However, it appeared that both sides of the conversation disagreed about the level of security at Colnbrook, suggesting it may have become safer over the past six years.
Colnbrook is one of seven Home Office immigration removal centres, which hold illegal immigrants and foreign criminals before they are deported.
In the year to March 2024 (the first full year reported since the UK signed a deal with Albania to return illegal migrants to each other), approximately 3,000 Albanians were returned under the rapid return arrangement.
‘The Sting’ told the men waiting in line to be deported: ‘As young men you have paid a lot of money to get into the UK and it is not a good thing to be sent back to Albania.’
He also suggested volunteering for kitchen jobs or taking out the trash as better options for a potential fugitive, but said they would have to do the job properly for a few days “to gain the trust” of security officers.
Their conversation, on TikTok’s Live feature that allows people to chat with other users in front of their viewers, ended with one of the men suggesting they continue the discussion privately to go over plans “properly.”
TikTok’s community guidelines prohibit any promotion of criminality, and the social media site told The Telegraph it was up to “relevant authorities” to flag accounts that could be used by people in prison or detention centres.
He added: “We will review and take appropriate action if we have sufficient information indicating violations of local laws.”
A Home Office spokesman confirmed that no detainees have escaped from custody recently, adding that staff are “fully trained and strict protocols are in place” to guard against such events.