A 27-year-old Sudanese man has been detained and charged in the UK in connection with the deaths of four migrants during a Channel crossing. Meanwhile, three British nationals are due to appear in court in France over their alleged involvement in a separate operation to smuggle migrants from the French coast.
A 27-year-old Sudanese man has been charged in the UK in connection with the deaths of four migrants last week during an attemped Channel crossing, as British authorities intensify efforts to crack down on irregular small-boat journeys.
Alnour MA, also known as Elnoor MA, was charged on Friday (April 10) with endangering another during a journey by sea to the UK, according to the National Crime Agency (NCA). Investigators allege he piloted a small boat from France to the UK on Thursday morning. Those on the boat chose to continue their journey to the UK, despite four people having drowned before they were able to board the boat off the coast of France.
The four victims, two men and two women whose identities have not been released, died in strong currents while attempting to board the vessel off the coast of Saint Etienne au Mont, near Boulogne-sur-Mer and Calais in France. The incident occurred as migrants tried to reach what authorities describe as a "taxi-boat," a small motorized inflatable used by smuggling networks to pick up passengers along stretches of the northern French coastline.
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Accused boat pilot denies involvement
French authorities recovered 38 people from the water, while the suspect and 73 other migrants continued the journey to England. He was later arrested at the Manston processing center in Kent.
Prosecutors allege that Alnour MA entered the UK "illegally by water" and, during the voyage, "caused or created a risk of death or serious injury," according to court proceedings at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court. Responding through an interpreter, Alnour MA said: "I didn’t do that," the news agency Associated Press (AP) reported.
The 27-year-old was remanded in custody and is due to appear on May 11 at Canterbury Crown Court. The charge was brought under new provisions in the UK’s Border, Security, Asylum and Immigration Act, which extends criminal jurisdiction in cases involving Channel crossings. Authorities say the legislation is intended to disrupt smuggling operations and target those suspected of organizing or facilitating the journeys.
Rise of taxi-boats
The use of so-called taxi-boats has become more common as French police increase patrols on beaches, often puncturing inflatable rafts before they can be launched. Once vessels are at sea, French authorities generally avoid intervening, citing maritime law and the potential danger such actions could pose to those on board.
An investigation led by a French prosecutor into the circumstances of the incident and the four deaths is ongoing, with the NCA assisting French counterparts. Investigators are also interviewing those who made the crossing.
"Working with colleagues at home and abroad, we are determined to do all we can to identify and bring to justice those responsible for these four tragic deaths," NCA Deputy Director Craig Turner said.
Minister for Migration and Citizenship Mike Tapp said that law enforcement teams would continue to work "relentlessly" with international partners to prevent irregular Channel crossings.
"Through our Border Security Act, officers now have stronger powers to act earlier and disrupt, intercept and take down the operations of criminal smuggling gangs who bring illegal migrants to our shores," said Tapp.
The case comes amid a recent rise in attempted Channel crossings. Authorities reported that 102 people were rescued in two operations last Wednesday, while two others died in similar circumstances off the coast north of Calais the previous week.
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Three suspected migrant smugglers to be tried in France
Also this week, three British nationals suspected of smuggling are due to appear in court on Monday (April 13) in Rouen, western France. Two British men and a woman suspected of involvement in people smuggling have been arrested after allegedly attempting to collect 11 migrants from the French coast, prosecutors said Saturday (April 11).
All three will be tried for assisting the irregular entry, movement or stay of a foreign national in France or within the Schengen area, under conditions exposing them to an immediate risk of death or permanent injury. The incident took place on Thursday morning (April 9) in Normandy, in the coastal town of Saint-Valéry-en-Caux.
Law enforcement officers "arrested three British smuggling suspects, two men and a woman, who had arrived by a private recreational boat to [allegedly] pick up eleven migrants of Syrian or Pakistani nationality on the French coast," said public prosecutor Sébastien Gallois, to the French news agency Agence France Presse (AFP). The office for combating the smuggling of migrants coordinated the investigation.
The suspects were taken into police custody, where the two men denied the allegations, while the woman admitted them "in part," stated reports in French newspapers.
"The evidence gathered, including migrant interviews and video surveillance, supported the investigators' suspicions," the prosecutor said.
The two men have been remanded in custody, while the woman has been placed under judicial supervision.
With AFP and AP