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An unsuccessful clandestine crossing which saw nearly 30 migrants have to be rescued from a small boat that broke down near the Minquiers, is believed to have cost €2,000 per passenger, according to French investigators.
The party, which included 10 children, hit trouble during their attempted crossing on a six-metre vessel on their way to Jersey or the UK in the early hours of last Thursday (8 July) when their fuel ran out.
Coastal authorities rescued the group – none of whom had identity documents with them – with the assistance of a French fishing boat, which kept watch for around three hours until they arrived. A woman in a wheelchair was taken to hospital with mild hypothermia, alongside another traveller who said they had diabetes.
French Police opened an investigation, and a man believed to be of Kuwaiti nationality was arrested on Friday on suspicion of attempted people smuggling.
Providing an update on the investigation this week, Lead Prosecutor Bertrand Leclerc told Ouest-France that it was believed the migrants departed from the Bay of Paimpol (Côtes-d’Armor) and paid €2,000 per person – including the children – for the journey.
He said the suspect, aged 27, was not believed to have acted alone. “There were intermediaries. He wouldn’t have been able to find the boat alone, taken the migrants by himself, it’s impossible. With whom? He has given us first names, but for now we’re not getting very far with that. There is definitely a network behind this.”
M. Leclerc continued: “These people were not in Brittany – 27 migrants going unnoticed in Paimpol, it’s not possible. They say they were brought here. They have been picked up from somewhere. In France, it’s the North where there are groups of migrants.”
Investigators have since seized the boat, which was not registered and did not contain GPS or safety gear. The migrants were not wearing life jackets when they crossed.
He added: “I don’t know how they managed to fit in that boat. It’s surreal, suicidal, the risks they have taken. In the Côtes-d’Armor area, it’s a novelty.”
Migrants on boat to Jersey rescued after fuel shortage
WATCH: Suspected trafficker arrested after migrant boat breakdown near Minquiers
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