A French court on Tuesday sentenced eight men to between three and 15 years in prison over the deaths of seven people when a boat carrying migrants capsized in the Channel in 2023.
Two Iraqis, six Afghans and one Sudanese national went on trial in November, accused of running a migrant-smuggling ring and facing charges including involuntary manslaughter, in the latest case targeting such networks between France and the UK.
Two 45-year-old Iraqi Kurds identified as the ringleaders of the smuggling network received the heaviest terms — 12 and 15 years — over the deaths of seven Afghans trying to reach the English coast.
The sentences were in line with prosecutors’ demands of three to 15 years for the eight defendants, who are aged between 23 and 45.
The court acquitted a ninth defendant, a Sudanese man who fled war-torn Darfur and was the presumed pilot of the vessel, after the public prosecutor’s office requested his release, recognising him as a ‘?’victim’ in the incident.
‘All of you who have been found guilty of manslaughter created the conditions that led to the deaths of people who drowned before help arrived and exposed others to imminent risk of death’, the presiding judge said on Tuesday.
The court sentenced Tariq H. to 12 years and Idriss K. to 15 years in prison, with the judge saying the particularly heavy terms were justified by their ‘lack of remorse’ and the risk of reoffending, as both had already been convicted as smugglers.
The defendants had denied any involvement in the crossing. The Sudanese defendant, Ibrahim A., was the only one to open up about the tragedy during the trial, but denied steering the boat.
‘You are first and foremost a candidate for departure and, like the other passengers, you could have lost your life’, the presiding judge told him when announcing his full acquittal.
His lawyer, Raphael Kempf, told AFP that his client welcomed the decision after spending more than two years in prison, noting the acquittal meant Ibrahim A. was now eligible to apply for refugee status.
Before he left the court, the presiding judge wished the 31-year-old — still wearing handcuffs — luck.
‘The court hopes that you will find in France the better life you were seeking when you boarded that boat.”
– ‘Organised’ migrant-smuggling system –Sixty-seven people were on board the overloaded boat when it capsized after its engine failed as it crossed the busy shipping route in August 2023.
All seven who lost their lives were Afghans, while 60 other people were rescued by French and British emergency services.
The investigation into the incident revealed ‘an organised and structured system’, for irregular migration to Britain operating in France and Germany, according to the investigative judges’ order referring the case to the criminal court.
With the coordination of several European countries, investigators uncovered a network ‘led by the Iraqi-Kurdish community” based in Germany, which handled logistics, while an ‘Afghan branch’ was responsible for recruiting migrants.
Britain has signed agreements with France and other nations aimed at tackling the surge in recent years of irregular migration to the UK, including targeting the smuggling gangs.
France has tried similar cases as the crossings persist, despite the dangers and authorities’ deterrents.
In June, a court in the northern city of Lille sentenced seven Afghans and two Iraqi Kurds to seven to eight years in prison after a boat transporting migrants from France to Britain capsized in 2022, killing eight people.
