A 26-year-old man and his 43-year-old accomplice, both of Syrian heritage, have received custodial sentences as a result of a conviction on charges involving people-trafficking. The two individuals were arrested in the seaside resort of De Panne (West Flanders) last year when they were stopped with a dinghy on their trailer containing fifteen car tyres that were intended to be used as lifejackets.
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People-traffickers jailed after dinghy is found with tyres as life jackets
Colin Clapson
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Their dinghy also contained a pump as well as a jerrycan and fuel. The boat was going to be used to ferry migrants to the UK.
Mobile phone texts spoke of 15 Ukrainian women that needed to be transported.
The 26-year-old received a 5-year sentence.
The 43-year-old, who was driving the car with the trailer, received a 48-month sentence, twelve months of which are suspended. He will also have to pay a 16,000-euro fine.