Grim scene inside people smuggler’s van as migrants are left ‘screaming for help’ – WorldNewsEra

A man has been found guilty of attempting to smuggle seven Vietnamese nationals into the UK, with photographs showing the appalling conditions the migrants were transported in.

Anas Al Mustafa, 43, was arrested after travelling in a white van on a ferry from Dieppe in northern France to Newhaven, Sussex, in February.

Border officials and police were alerted to his vehicle after crew on the boat heard its human cargo “screaming for help”, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.

The ferry captain and crew helped the migrants escape by breaking down a false wall at the back of the van in which the seven people were hiding.

All persons found in the van received urgent medical attention on the spot as they were suffering from lack of oxygen due to the conditions in which they had been transported.

They all required hospital treatment, and one of them remained in a coma for several weeks after the incident, the CPS said.

Al Mustafa, from Swansea, was today (Thursday) found guilty of assisting illegal immigration into the UK during a trial at Lewes Crown Court.

He will be sentenced on September 6. Photos released after the verdict show the small space the migrants were given for the crossing – which can take up to four hours.

The room was 2 metres wide, 194 centimetres high and 37 centimetres narrow, the BBC reported.

Lauren Doshi, of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), said: “The defendant in this case attempted to conceal his involvement in smuggling people into this country.

“A lot of effort has gone into modifying a van to allow people to be concealed in the back in dangerous and potentially life-threatening circumstances.

“All of this was to circumvent the checks and border controls we have in place to prevent illegal immigration. He put the lives of those he was trying to smuggle into the UK at risk.

“The CPS is committed to working with law enforcement to identify and prosecute those involved in people trafficking. We will seek to recover any money or assets obtained through this crime through our Proceeds of Crime Division.

Border Security and Asylum Minister Dame Angela Eagle said: “This appalling incident could easily have ended in tragedy, and everyone who was in this criminal’s van should feel incredibly lucky to be alive.”

“We are sending a clear message that we will not tolerate this kind of life-threatening activity. Our new Border Security Command will work with partners across Europe to destroy the business models of criminal smuggling gangs and stop their activities long before they reach the UK.”

Chris Foster, the Home Office’s regional lead for criminal investigations for the south, said: “Today’s conviction is a clear example of the lengths to which rogue people smugglers will go to make money.

“The lives of seven people were put at risk after they were crammed into a cramped and confined space in the back of a van, with no access to air.

“I want to thank my investigative teams for their work on today’s case. We will continue to tirelessly pursue human traffickers who undermine our border security in an attempt to trade lives for money.”