A minibus driver who caught migrants smuggling into a secret compartment and screaming for help as they were starving for oxygen has been found guilty.
Anas Al Mustafa, 43, was found guilty of facilitating illegal immigration by smuggling seven people on a ferry from Dieppe, France, to Newhaven, East Sussex, in a specially designed van on February 16.
The discovery at the East Sussex port prompted the mobilisation of a large emergency response team, with ambulances, police and Border Protection involved.
Jurors at Lewes Crown Court heard how six men and one woman were deprived of oxygen and dehydrated in a secret space “the width of a human chest”.
Following the jury’s unanimous verdict, prosecutor Nick Corsellis KC told the court that the young migrants had survived the dehydration and heat, but one man had a heart attack, a woman suffered acute kidney failure and another man was taken to hospital in a coma and had a stroke.
Judge Christine Laing KC said Al Mustafa would likely receive a “significant prison sentence” for his role in the trade, which could have “devastating” consequences for those trying to enter the country.
The trial heard that crew members on the Seven Sisters heard pleas from inside a van on deck during the voyage and used an axe to break open a false bulkhead hiding people inside in an attempt to rescue them.
Prosecutor Corsellis, who opened the case, said that the secret compartment was 2 meters wide, 194 cm high and 37 cm narrow, so the migrants had to stand and could not move meaningfully.
The prosecutor added that they were not given water.
“The heat generated by seven people in such a small space and the lack of sufficient air/oxygen created an extremely dangerous situation,” Corsellis said.
“It was undoubtedly this deadly emergency that caused the migrants to call for help in desperation.”
Jurors were told that at around 09.20, two of the rescued migrants lost consciousness and the entire group was taken to hospital for treatment.
Sari Gehle, an Australian nurse and ferry passenger who responded to the crew’s call for help during the incident, described the female casualty as “terrified”, clutching her arm and saying “Vietnam, Vietnam” repeatedly, so she knew the group was from there.
He recalled that the other male casualties were lying on the ground, one vomiting and another with a cut on his left shoulder. They were all given oxygen masks.
During the trial, Al Mustafa, from Swansea, denied knowing they were in the vehicle and told jurors he was “shocked” and “completely numb” when he discovered they were in the vehicle.
The father of two added that this was “the hardest day of his life”.
It was previously stated in court that Al Mustafa, who was of Syrian origin but moved to the UK in 2010-2011, was introduced to a man named Badr on his last visit to Syria and that Badr asked him to be a minibus driver.
In his police statement, given without an interpreter, Al Mustafa said he had previously been paid £500 to drive the van to Liverpool for an inspection, but on the job in February he was paid £5,000 to drive the van to England.
Jurors heard Al Mustafa told police he did not know there were people in the van but thought “maybe there are people in there this time” because he had been paid £5,000.
Mr Corsellis asked the jury to consider whether this was a confession, adding: “We believe the defendant is not telling the whole truth about his trafficking.”
Asked about the interview, Al Mustafa told the jury through an interpreter that the £5,000 figure was wrong and that he meant £500.
He also stated that he did not remember telling police that he thought there might be people in the van and did not know why he said so.
Instead, Al Mustafa told the court he flew to Amsterdam for a holiday and met Badr at the airport, where Badr suggested he drive the minibus he had used for the inspection earlier and take the vehicle back to the workshop, saying there was a fault with the transmission.
“The defendant in this case attempted to conceal the fact that he was smuggling people into this country,” said Lauren Doshi of the Public Prosecution Service, following the announcement of the verdict.
“A lot of effort had gone into adapting a van to hide people in the back in dangerous and potentially life-threatening conditions. All of this was designed to avoid the checks and border controls we have in place to prevent illegal immigration. He put the lives of the people he was trying to smuggle into the UK at risk.
“We will be tracking any money or assets obtained from this crime through our Proceeds of Crime Division.”
The sentence of the self-employed construction worker will be determined on September 6.