People smuggler who crammed 7 migrants into lorry convicted

A people smuggler who left 7 migrants requiring urgent hospital treatment after cramming them into a boiling lorry has been convicted.

Anas Al Mustafa, 43, was convicted today after ferry staff discovered the migrants screaming for help inside a tiny compartment of his lorry at Newhaven Ferry Port earlier this year.

The miniscule concealment, which was only 2 metres wide, left the 6 men and 1 woman squashed alongside each other and without the ability to move their arms from their sides.

On 15 February 2024, Mustafa booked to travel on a ferry from Dieppe to Newhaven in his van. The next morning, when he arrived in the UK, the migrants were found concealed in the rear of the van behind a fitted panel, which could only be accessed by a tiny hole measuring just 22 inches.

The court heard earlier this week that the group of migrants were heard banging and calling for help in the over-heated van on board the ferry as they were starved of oxygen. They were later taken to hospital and treated for heat exhaustion.

Mustafa was arrested at the scene for trafficking people into the country illegally. As he was arrested, he frantically deleted material from his mobile phone which was discovered later as the extent of his crimes unravelled.

Officers at the scene had already identified Mustafa as someone they had stopped previously for attempting to smuggle shisha and cigarettes into the UK.

Today (29 August), at Lewes Crown Court, Mustafa was found guilty of facilitating the breach of UK immigration law.

Minister for Border Security and Asylum, Dame Angela Eagle, said:

This appalling incident could have easily ended in tragedy, and everyone who was squashed inside this criminal’s van is incredibly lucky to still be alive.