Chan Mathok Atak Jailed 27 Months for Piloting 165 Migrants Across Channel
Updated
Updated · bbc.co.uk · Sep 18
Chan Mathok Atak Jailed 27 Months for Piloting 165 Migrants Across Channel
3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Sep 18
Summary
Two years and three months in prison was imposed on 19-year-old Chan Mathok Atak after he admitted endangering 165 migrants by steering a dinghy from Calais to the UK on July 23.
Prosecutors said the 14.3-meter boat was severely overcrowded, deflating and running on one working engine, with inadequate lifejackets, little food or water, and 31 children aboard after nearly 24 hours at sea.
Ninety minutes of aerial footage showed Atak piloting the vessel before he allegedly moved away from the engine and removed his jacket to avoid being identified as the helmsman.
Judge Sarah Counsell said only immediate custody was justified and warned Atak, a South Sudan national, he could face automatic deportation after serving his sentence.
The conviction is the 16th under the UK's new endangerment-at-sea offence created in January, as authorities intensify prosecutions of small-boat pilots linked to Channel smuggling routes.