An audacious attempt by a suspected people smuggler to evade French authorities was captured on camera, showing the man pretending to fall from an overcrowded dinghy as it departed Dunkirk.
The Faked Fall
In astonishing footage obtained by Sky News, a man dressed in a black tracksuit and cap is seen aboard a packed inflatable vessel preparing to cross the English Channel. As the small boat begins its journey, the man deliberately pretends to fall into the water, making it appear he wasn't intending to travel with the dozens of migrants onboard.
The investigation into European human smuggling gangs revealed this was merely a ruse to avoid suspicion from police monitoring the departure. In separate footage, the same individual was later seen being questioned by French officers alongside three other suspected people smugglers.
The Smuggling Business Model
The shocking video formed part of a broader investigation that uncovered the sophisticated operations behind Europe's people smuggling industry. According to the findings, smugglers who accompany migrants on the perilous journey charge approximately £3,000 per person for passage across the Channel.
A London-based human trafficker interviewed during the investigation explained the network's structure. 'The middle people live in 'the Jungle' all the time, and they get people ready', he revealed, referring to temporary camps around Calais where migrants stay after reaching Europe.
The operation involves higher-level figures based in countries including Poland, Germany and Belgium, who purchase boats and send them to workers in France. These boss figures ultimately decide when it's time to dispatch migrants across the dangerous shipping lane.
Growing Migration Crisis
This investigation comes amid Britain's ongoing struggle with a migration crisis that has seen hundreds of people fleeing poverty and conflict attempting the Channel crossing in overloaded boats operated by smugglers.
The issue has become a significant political flashpoint in the UK, with tensions escalating over housing tens of thousands of asylum seekers at taxpayer expense. Recent figures highlight the scale of the challenge, with 503 migrants crossing the English Channel last Saturday alone in seven small boats.
This brings the total number of arrivals for this year to 38,726, compared to 32,119 by the same date last year and 26,699 in 2023.
In response to the growing crisis, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is preparing to announce a major shake-up of Britain's immigration rules in the coming weeks. The changes are modelled on Denmark's system, considered among the toughest in Europe.
Home Office officials visited Denmark last month to study its border control and asylum policies, which include tighter rules on family reunions and restricting some refugees to temporary stays. Ms Mahmood has stated she wants deterrents in place to stop people seeking to enter the UK via unauthorised routes, while making it easier to remove those with no right to stay.
