A man has been jailed for 20 months after he smuggled more than 50 migrants across the English Channel in a “perilously overcrowded dinghy”.
Choul Phan Maker, 31, from South Sudan, was jailed at Winchester Crown Court for unlawful arrival and assisting unlawful immigration after making the crossing which “endangered” the 52 passengers on board the boat.
Passengers on the vessel were made to stand on makeshift flooring during the 350-mile journey from England to France.
Maker was caught when Border Force officials photographed him “grinning” at the tiller of the boat as he brazenly made for UK shores on August 15.
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “Maker, from South Sudan, had previously been ordered to leave France after being caught attempting to enter the UK in a lorry.
“He then spent more than three years in Europe, before travelling from Malta for his latest attempt to cross the Channel.
“Criminal and Financial Investigation officers identified Maker as the boat’s pilot and started gathering evidence to support his conviction.
“He was subsequently arrested and admitted to piloting the boat, telling officers that he had been offered the job by the criminal gang who facilitated the journey.”
Following the sentencing, Steve Blackwell, deputy director of Criminal and Financial Investigations at the Home Office, thanked officers for their work in bringing Maker to justice.
He said: “This pilot thought nothing of endangering dozens of lives in order to make his own illegal journey to the UK.
“I’m thankful for the quick work of my investigating officers, which has led to us bringing this criminal to justice. His sentence shows that anyone caught piloting these dinghies can expect to be arrested and prosecuted.”
The Home Office spokeswoman said small boat crossings to the UK have fallen by 36%, while arrivals into Europe from Africa have increased by more than 70%.
Analysis of Home Office figures by the PA news agency found 3,529 people had made the Channel crossing in small boats up to March 19 this year compared with 3,683 by the same point last year.
Illegal migration minister Michael Tomlinson said: “The criminal gangs behind these crossings don’t care if people live or die, as long as they pay, but they rely on migrants who are willing to steer their deadly crossings through the water.
“Putting lives at risk by taking charge of these dangerous, illegal and completely unnecessary crossing attempts will not be tolerated and it is right that this pilot has been brought to justice today.”
