Crammed into an airless gluten trailer, 18 Iraqis and Afghans on way to N.Wales; ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS RUMBLED: Men's desperate bid to enter UK.Byline: KELLY BARKER THIS is the sight that greeted border officers when they bust open a freight vehicle - a group of 18 illegal immigrants hiding in a tanker full of gluten gluten, mixture of proteins present in the cereal grains. The long molecules of gluten, insoluble in water, are strong and flexible and form many cross linkages. powder. The men were trying to smuggle smug·gle v. smug·gled, smug·gling, smug·gles v.tr. 1. To import or export without paying lawful customs charges or duties. 2. To bring in or take out illicitly or by stealth. themselves into the country in the lorry headed for Wrexham, it emerged last night. UK Border Agency officers found the 18 men in Calais on August 27 after a specially-trained dog led them to the stowaways. The tanker was on its way to North Wales North Wales (known in some archaic texts as Northgalis) is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales, bordered to the south by Mid Wales and to the east by England. when the 16 Afghan and two Iraqi men were discovered. They were fingerprinted, photographed, and handed over to the French authorities. The driver of the vehicle and the company that own it could now face a fine of up to pounds 2,000 for every stowaway if it is found they did not secure their load properly. The name of the firm and whether it is based in North Wales has not yet been confirmed. Immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. officials raised concerns about the conditions the men had been travelling in when the vehicle was stopped and searched. A UK Border Agency spokesman said: "The load space within this tanker was roughly three quarters full, with no air vents - the length of the Channel crossing and a long journey across the UK would have presented serious implications for these men. "We have hundreds of UK Border Agency officers based at our juxtaposed controls in France and Belgium, carrying out checks to stop illegal immigrants before they get to the UK." He added: "Since January this year we have stopped over 14,000 individual attempts to cross the channel illegally and have searched over 400,000 freight vehicles - checking that they are not harbouring illegal migrants. "As well as body detection dogs, we also use heart beat detectors and carbon dioxide carbon dioxide, chemical compound, CO2, a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is about one and one-half times as dense as air under ordinary conditions of temperature and pressure. detectors to find well hidden stowaways trying to get into the UK illegally." The UK Border Agency was launched in April by the Home Office, establishing a single force to protect UK borders. Anyone who suspects any suspicious activity involving illegal immigrants, can contact the UK Border Agency on 029 2092 4727. kelly.barker@dailypost.co.uk CAPTION(S): The scene that met Calais border officials |
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