UK jails teen asylum seeker for steering overcrowded Channel migrant boat
The boat lacked safety gear and took on water before interception by UK Border Force, authorities say.
A 19-year-old asylum seeker has been jailed in the UK for steering an overcrowded dinghy across the English Channel, in the latest prosecution under a new law targeting those who pilot boats used to smuggle migrants into Britain.
Chan Mathok Atak, from South Sudan, was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court in southeast England on Friday to two years and three months, after admitting a charge of endangering others during the crossing from France.
The law, introduced in January this year, is aimed at those who steer boats that put passengers’ lives at risk, though distinct from older charges such as assisting unlawful immigration.
Although no evidence was presented that Atak organised the crossing, Judge Sarah Counsell said the offence was serious enough that “only an immediate custodial sentence can be justified”, warning that he could still face automatic deportation once his sentence ends.