People traffickers 'are paying French fishing boat crews to get migrants across the Channel without being spotted by military drones' as 80 more arrive on third-busiest day this month

  • Migrants clamber into dinghies held in the fishing boat once on open water
  • Using fishing trips as a guise allows groups to evade detection by drones 
  • The £22 million Watchkeeper drone began reconnaissance missions this year

People traffickers are hiring French fishing boat crews to carry desperate migrants halfway across the Channel in a bid to evade eye-in-the-sky military drones.

Once in open water, asylum seekers clamber into pre-inflated dinghies held in the fishing boat to complete the rest of the perilous 21-mile crossing, reports suggest.

Onlookers have reported seeing between 70 and 80 migrants arrive into Dover after crossing the Channel in eight boats today - however it is unknown whether fishing boats were used in their journey. 

Three of the vessels that arrived into Dover on Monday were escorted across by French officials before being passed over to Border Force for processing, witnesses claim.

The unconfirmed figure - which included a young child who was carried by a Border Force officer - marks the third-busiest day for crossings this month. 

Using fishing trips as a guise allows groups to evade detection by drones - such as the £22 million Watchkeeper which launched its first reconnaissance mission earlier this year.

Fishing boats are departing from Calais in the earlier hours of the morning and, once around halfway across the Channel, are standing stationary for some 15 minutes, reports suggest.

The 15-minute slot would be enough time for the highly-dangerous inflatable vessels to be cast out into the water - before the desperate migrants climb onboard.

A Border Force officer carries a young child as a group of migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, on Monday

A Border Force officer carries a young child as a group of migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force today

A group of migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, following an incident involving a small boat in the Channel on Monday

A group of migrants are brought into Dover, Kent, by Border Force following a small boat incident in the Channel on Monday

Using fishing trips as a guise allows groups to evade detection by drones - such as the £22 million Watchkeeper (pictured) which launched its first reconnaissance mission earlier this year

Using fishing trips as a guise allows groups to evade detection by drones - such as the £22 million Watchkeeper (pictured) which launched its first reconnaissance mission earlier this year 

The boats then head back to French shores, evidence seen by The Sun has revealed.

A source said the use of fishing boats 'is becoming a big problem'. 

They added: 'Nobody is going to suspect a French fishing boat. The organised crime gangs have infiltrated them.'

Yesterday, tragedy struck when a migrant drowned as he tried to get to Britain from northern France via a makeshift boat. 

The body of a man, who cannot be identified because he was not carrying any documents, was found on the beach at Sangatte, next to Calais, on Sunday morning.

Next to him was a life vest – one typical of the kind that migrants wear as they pack rigid inflatable dinghies bound for the coast of England, or by those using makeshift crafts.  

The French Navy issued an image of authorities rescuing migrants after an unsuccessful attempt to cross the Channel over the weekend

The French Navy issued an image of authorities rescuing migrants after an unsuccessful attempt to cross the Channel over the weekend

A group of people were seen on board a Boarder Force vessel as they arrived into Dover today

A group of people were seen on board a Boarder Force vessel as they arrived into Dover today

Migrants wearing life jackets were seen on board a Border Force vessel on Monday

Migrants wearing life jackets were seen on board a Border Force vessel on Monday

On Sunday morning the French Navy intercepted 11 boats containing a total of 191 migrants trying to get across the English Channel.

According to Home Office Figures, 170 migrants crossed the Channel in just 12 small boats on Saturday, while a further 222 were prevented from crossing by the French authorities. 

Pascal Marconville, the prosecutor at nearby Boulogne-sur-Mer, opened a criminal enquiry into the drowning and confirmed that the man 'had no identity papers on him.'

Mr Marconville said he was 'aged in the 20 to 40 range' and was of Middle Eastern appearance.

'An examination of the body does not reveal the intervention of a third party,' said Mr Marconville.

Some of the migrants escorted into Dover on Monday wrapped up in blankets

Some of the migrants escorted into Dover on Monday wrapped up in blankets

Onlookers have reported seeing between 70 and 80 migrants arrive into Dover after crossing the Channel in eight boats today (one pictured)

Onlookers have reported seeing between 70 and 80 migrants arrive into Dover after crossing the Channel in eight boats today (one pictured)

He added that the position of the corpse and the absence of footprints in the sand around it made it clear that the 'body was thrown back by the sea'.

He said it was likely the victim had drowned trying to make the crossing this weekend and that his body had washed up on the shore just a few hours later.

Mr Marconville said officers investigating the incident would work with the migrant communities based in Calais and Dunkirk to try to establish his identity and the circumstances around his death.

The man's body was found by the emergency services at 8am, following a call from a member of the public.

Ambulance staff attempted to revive the man, but he was declared dead at the scene. 

The latest drowning follows a war of words between France and Britain over who should be preventing migrants making the perilous sea journey between the two countries.

Three of the vessels that arrived into Dover on Monday were escorted across by French officials before being passed over to Border Force for processing, witnesses claim. Pictured: A UK Border Force vessel

Three of the vessels that arrived into Dover on Monday were escorted across by French officials before being passed over to Border Force for processing, witnesses claim. Pictured: A UK Border Force vessel

The co-founder of refugee charity Care4Calais, Clare Moseley, said: 'Refugees take this risk because they are frightened, fleeing appalling horrors in some of the most dangerous places on earth.

'They do it because of the grim and unsanitary conditions in Calais, where they are constantly harassed and abused by the authorities.

'They do it because there is no safe and legal way to have their UK asylum claim heard.'

Dan O'Mahoney, Clandestine Channel Threat Commander, said: 'These crossings are facilitated by callous criminals who smuggle people out of safe EU countries and put more pressure on our broken asylum system - delaying or denying support to those genuinely in need of protection.

Watchkeeper WK450 drone stats 

Manufacturer: French defence contractor Thales

First flown: 2010 

Cost: £22 million

Wingspan: 11 metres

Weight: 485kg

Capability: Range of 90 miles for 14 hours. Cruises at up to 16,000ft

Technology: Synthetic aperture radar and a moving target indicator radar  

Deployments: Camp Bastion in Afghanistan, 47th Regiment Royal Artillery from Lydd airport in Kent. 

Advertisement

'We are working closely with the French who today have stopped 188 people from making this extremely dangerous crossing, seizing boats and equipment and intercepting people inland. 

'This week the Home Office and NCA have also made 12 arrests of individuals involved in people smuggling and illegal entry.

'We are also committed to fixing the asylum system, to stop those who have no right to be in the UK coming here, to make it fairer and firmer, compassionate to those who need help and welcoming people through safe and legal routes.' 

Among those detained on Saturday were 14 migrants are thought to have landed on a beach at Dungeness on the Romney Marsh where they were handed over to immigration officials.

It comes after another 27 were detained on Friday in one large rigid hulled inflatable boat (RHIB).

And French authorities also made two interceptions on Friday at sea involving 25 people. They also prevented a further eight people from leaving the beaches around Calais.

Minister for Immigration Compliance and the Courts, Chris Philp, said: 'We are taking action at every step of these illegally-facilitated journeys to make this route unviable.

'We are working closely with the French who today have stopped 222 people from making this dangerous crossing, seizing boats and equipment and intercepting people inland. This week the Home Office and NCA have also made 12 arrests of individuals involved in people smuggling and illegal entry.

'We are also committed to fixing the asylum system, to stop those who have no right to be in the UK coming here, to make it fairer and firmer, compassionate to those who need help and welcoming people through safe and legal routes.' 

The unconfirmed figure of between 70 and 80 migrants arriving today (some pictured) marks the third-busiest day for crossings this month

 The unconfirmed figure of between 70 and 80 migrants arriving today (some pictured) marks the third-busiest day for crossings this month

A barefoot man is escorted off a Border Force vessel by officials in Dover today
A Border Force official walks alongside a barefoot man in Dover today

Two men - both barefoot - are escorted off a Border Force vessel by officials in Dover today

The French Navy issued this image showing migrants rescued by authorities after an unsuccessful attempt to cross the Channel over the weekend

The French Navy issued this image showing migrants rescued by authorities after an unsuccessful attempt to cross the Channel over the weekend

Dan O'Mahoney, Clandestine Channel Threat Commander for Border Force, said: 'These crossings are facilitated by callous criminals who smuggle people out of safe EU countries and put more pressure on our broken asylum system - delaying or denying support to those genuinely in need of protection.

'We have committed to fixing the asylum system, to stop those who have no right to be in the UK coming here. The new system will be fairer and firmer and will be compassionate towards those who need our help, welcoming people through safe and legal routes.

'We are working closely with the French, who today stopped 33 people from making these crossings.'

Saturday's numbers mean a record 7,370 migrants have so far reached UK shores in small boats compared to around 1,850 in 2019.

In September alone 1,954 made it across the English Channel in small boats.

The comments below have not been moderated.

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

We are no longer accepting comments on this article.