Sudanese ‘taxi boat pilot’ is charged over deaths of four migrants drowned trying to cross the Channel
A Sudanese ‘taxi boat pilot’ has been charged over the deaths of four migrants who drowned while trying to cross the English Channel.
The National Crime Agency said Sudanese national Alnour Mohamed Ali was charged with endangering life on Friday after two men and two women died while trying to board a small boat crossing the English Channel on Thursday.
The 27-year-old man is alleged to have been driving the boat from France to England.
Two men and two women died after trying to climb into a “taxi boat” at Equihen-Plage, near Boulogne-sur-Mer, on Thursday morning.
After the incident south of Boulogne-sur-Mer, near Calais, 38 people were sent back to the French coast, but 74 migrants went to the UK.
He will appear at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court on Saturday.
Designed to avoid detection by French police, the new ‘taxi boat’ people smuggling tactic involves boats traveling along the coast with just a driver to pre-determined beaches where migrants enter the water to swim.
Two children were among those hospitalized as a precaution after the incident on Thursday, and one person was treated for hypothermia.
Sudanese national Alnour Mohamed Ali (pictured) was charged with endangering life.
A massive rescue operation was launched after onlookers saw many bodies floating in the water.
Endangering another person during a sea voyage to the UK was a new offense introduced as part of border security legislation earlier this year.
The first person charged in January was 18-year-old Afghan citizen Aman Naseri.
According to the Home Office, the offense is designed to prevent more people being crammed into unsafe boats and will apply to anyone who resists rescue, as well as those involved in acts of physical assault and intimidation.
Francois-Xavier Lauch, a French government official and governor of Pas-de-Calais, told reporters on Thursday that the dead were “already quite far out to sea,” adding: “The currents, which could be dangerous here, carried them away.”
The agency is assisting French authorities with their investigations.
It came a day after French emergency services took part in a training exercise to practice dealing with migrants in the water on the beach where the deaths occurred.
More than 5,000 migrants have reached the UK after crossing the Channel so far this year, according to Home Office data.
Immigrant charities have repeated calls for the Government to provide safe and legal routes for asylum seekers to the UK to prevent further deaths, and the Conservatives have accused Labor of being ‘weak’ in tackling crossings.
A tent was set up in the northern coastal town of Equihen-Plage to care for the victims of the incident
Thermal blankets were distributed to survivors by emergency response teams.
The government said it was ‘deeply saddened’ by the deaths.
Last week, two migrants died in a similar crossing attempt; It is thought to be the first this year.
NCA Deputy Director Craig Turner said: ‘Working with our colleagues at home and abroad, we are determined to do all we can to identify those responsible for these four tragic deaths and bring them to justice.’
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp MP said: ‘Crossing the Channel in often broken and faulty boats is extremely dangerous and puts lives at risk.
‘Labour’s weak approach to allowing these crossings to continue is causing loss of life and their reluctance to take decisive action on illegal immigration is fueling this crisis. Nearly 70,000 illegal immigrants have crossed the Channel since Keir Starmer took office; he doesn’t have the backbone to do what’s necessary.
‘Stopping passages requires more than disrupting beaches. Those entering illegally need to be removed quickly to remove the incentive to make these dangerous journeys.’
