'Blow' for people smuggling gangs as boats seized

Criminal gangs were dealt a "serious blow" when a haul of small boat equipment which would have been used to smuggle thousands of people into the UK was seized.

National Crime Agency investigators, working with teams from Border Force, seized at least 25 inflatable boats and 25 outboard engines in Felixstowe, Suffolk.

The 10-metre-long rubber boats and Parsun engines were found at the Port of Felixstowe on 18 July inside a container that had been shipped from China.

Adam Berry, NCA branch commander, said the "significant seizure" would have put a "huge dent in the profits" of the criminal network involved.

"It will also have stopped these dangerous boats and under-powered engines being used to put lives at risk in the Channel," he added.

"Targeting the supply lines of people smuggling gangs is just one way we are trying to disrupt them. Our investigation continues."

The seizure is believed to be the first time a bulk consignment of boats and engines destined for people smugglers has been in the UK.

The shipment was destined for Hamburg, Germany, where investigators believe it would have been offloaded and used by people smugglers in France and Belgium.

The NCA said each boat could have carried around 80 people, meaning as many as 2,000 lives could have been put at risk while attempting to cross the English Channel.

It added that the international investigation into those involved was ongoing but there was no suggestion the crew or operators of the ship knew what was in the container.

Duncan Capps CBE, border security commander, said: "This seizure delivers yet another serious blow to the criminal gangs facilitating dangerous and illegal crossings.

"Thanks to the hard work of the NCA, Home Office intelligence teams and Border Force officers, disruptions like these to criminal networks and their supply lines are happening more than ever before.

"We will continue to investigate, pursue and detain all those smuggling flimsy small boat equipment, and ensure that they face the full force of the law."

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