A 30-year-old Sudanese man has been arrested after allegedly attempting to steal a fishing trawler in Ramsgate harbour in the early hours of Tuesday morning, reportedly to "collect his family" from France.
Kent Police was called to Royal Harbour at around 3am following a report of a theft in progress. Officers attended and arrested the man, who remains in custody while enquiries continue.
Incident on the Carousel trawler
The man boarded the Carousel, a commercial trawler that fishes for whelks, while the crew were asleep. He started the engine and revved it so hard that one of the mooring ropes snapped, according to reports.
Olly Swift, 31, a skipper who co-owns the boat, said it was "stolen by an immigrant with all the lads in their bunks". He wrote on Facebook: "He got onto the boat, started the engine and slapped the throttle down to the dash which snapped the mooring ropes and they've ended up out in the middle of the harbour. He was insisting they take him to France to collect his family!"
Mr Swift said the crew "managed to get on top of the situation and get the boat back alongside the wall and get some new ropes on". He told the Daily Mail the 30-year-old "put people's lives at risk" and was "like a man possessed", adding that the "lads" onboard "were scared for their lives".
Police response and reaction
Stephen Williamson, managing director of Lynn Shellfish, a wholesaler that co-owns the boat with Mr Swift, said it was "very lucky" the crew was onboard to stop the suspected migrant, suggesting it was "a threat to his own life and a threat to the vessel".
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said he had spoken to Mr Swift following the incident. He wrote on X: "Our country sinks deeper every day."
A Kent Police spokesperson said: "Kent Police was called at 3.17am on Tuesday November 3 to a report of a theft in progress at Royal Harbour, Ramsgate. It is reported that an attempt was made to take a boat to sea and ropes were damaged."
"Officers attended and a 30-year-old Sudanese man was arrested in connection with the incident. He remains in custody while enquiries to establish the circumstances continue."
The Express has contacted the Home Office for further details on his immigration status.
