- Ibrahima Bah, 19, was arrested on Friday and charged with facilitating attempted illegal entry into the UK after a boat capsized in the Channel this week.
- People in T-shirts and thin lifejackets shouted for help as they were pulled from the water in a dramatic rescue operation. Eight children were among those who were successfully rescued.
A 19 year old man, Ibrahama Bah, has been charged over the deaths of four migrant passengers that were on a rubber dinghy attempting to enter the UK illegally following a rescue attempt was carried out to save the lives of the remaining people on the migrant boat in the English Channel earlier this week.
Following the boat capsize which resulted in the four deaths and the rescue of the 39 people, Kent police announced that Ibrahima Bah, 19, of no fixed address, had been detained on Friday and charged with aiding an attempt to enter the UK illegally.
The police released a statement in which they stated: “The Crown Prosecution Service has authorised an allegation against Ibrahima Bah of intentionally aiding the attempted arrival in the United Kingdom of people he knew or had reason to believe were asylum seekers.
On Wednesday, 39 people were saved after a dinghy encountered problems off the coast of Kent, but four of them, including a child, perished. The next-of-kin of those who perished are still being sought after, according to Kent Police.
The Crown Prosecution Service had authorised a charge against Mr. Bah for intentionally assisting the attempted entry into the UK of individuals he knew or had good reason to believe were asylum seekers, according to a statement released by the police.
People were hauled from the sea during a spectacular rescue operation while shouting for assistance while wearing T-shirts and lightweight life jackets. The incident took place at night, and as individuals were being carried out, helicopters lit the area.
The group had been on a crowded vessel that began sinking in the early hours in icy waters.
At 3:05 GMT, reports of a small boat in trouble off the coast of Dungeness, 30 miles west of Dover, were brought to the attention of the authorities. Tuesday night saw a decrease in temperature to 1C, and it was probably more colder at sea. Those who were successfully saved included eight children.
Kent was under a yellow weather warning at the time. Lifeboats and the UK coastguard received assistance from adjacent fishing boat crews during the rescue. In addition, the French fleet and air and land ambulances were used.
A new command centre and extra funds to combat immigration criminality were among the measures the government outlined on Tuesday to stop small boat crossings. In 2022, around 45,000 people have already travelled to the UK via the English Channel.
