LONDON: A man has been jailed in the UK for trying to smuggle migrants into the country, a day after it was revealed a Sudanese teenager had drowned attempting to reach the English coast.
Altaib Mobarak, 43, was caught on July 7 by the UK Border Force piloting a dinghy, known as a rigid-hulled inflatable boat (RHIB) in the English Channel between Britain and France, carrying nine Sudanese and Yemeni nationals, including two children.
He admitted to driving the RHIB, and a charge of facilitating illegal entry into the UK, and was sentenced to two years in prison by a judge at Kent Crown Court.
UK Home Office Clandestine Channel Threat Commander Dan O’Mahoney gave his reaction to the sentence saying: “Those attempting to cross the Channel, one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, in unsuitable boats and without appropriate maritime skills are putting at risk the lives of all those on board. It is of particular concern when, as was the case here, vulnerable children are involved.
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“It is precisely because of this risk to life — a reality that we have seen confirmed in yesterday’s tragic incident — that we are determined to put a stop to these dangerous crossings,” he added.
O’Mahoney, who was appointed last month to the role by UK Home Secretary Priti Patel to tackle the issue of boats being used to smuggle people into Britain, was referring to the death of a 16 year old Sudanese migrant, who fell overboard from a boat.
His body was discovered washed up on a beach not far from the French port of Calais on Wednesday. The deputy prosecutor of Boulogne-sur-Mer, Philippe Sabatier, said there were suggestions that he and another boy had been attempting to use shovels as oars to make the crossing. The second boy was discovered alive “in a state of shock” and taken to a hospital in Calais.
O’Mahoney was speaking from Paris, where he is currently discussing measures on how to prevent migrants from crossing the Channel with French authorities. On Wednesday, 164 more migrants reached the UK in 11 boats, bringing the total to have successfully made the journey in 2020 to 5,000.
