Dover crackdown nets
Page 11
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
140 illegal immigrants
• by Ian Wylie
Around 140 illegal immigrants, most of them found hidden in HGVs, were seized in a 24-hour crackdown at the port of Dover last week. However, the Home Office says none of the drivers involved will be charged,
Immigration officials, who found 74 "clandestine" immigrants within hours of the operation starting on Wednesday, hope to send out the message that Britain is not a "soft target" for smuggling gangs.
According to a Home Office spokesman, all but 28 of the illegal immigrants were found in trucks. Officers used two dogs and devices which detect carbon dioxide inside lorry containers, indicating the presence of stowaways. Drivers were interviewed by immigration officers and, in some cases, police, but the Home Office Says there is no evidence that any of the drivers were aware of their hidden human cargo.
The high-profile operation was launched after figures showed a further surge in the number of people trying to smuggle themselves into the UK.
Provisional figures indicate that the Immigration Service found 1,130 4clandestines" in August, compared with 815 in July and the 3,212 caught at the port during
the whole of last year. The Home Office spokesman warns that further crackdowns are likely: 'In the words of the Terminator, well be back,' he says.