Sixty-nine migrants caught hiding in trawler off UK let off charges as they were detained BEFORE setting foot in Britain
CRIMINAL charges against 69 migrants who were caught hiding in a trawler heading toward the UK were dropped yesterday.
The Albanian migrants were arrested last month after the fishing boat was stopped off the coast of East Anglia.
It was one of the biggest ever operations involving the National Crime Agency, police and Border Force officers.
But now plans to prosecute the migrants for illegal entry to the UK have been abandoned because when they were arrested they had not yet set foot on British soil - a key requirement under the law.
Alp Mehmet of Migration Watch UK, which campaigns for tougher border controls, said: "What on earth is the point of elaborate operations to take action against illegal entry if the legal process is then going to be bungled so spectacularly?
"A failure on this scale will only encourage other migrants to chance their arm across the Channel."
A Border Force source told "It's a basic principle that a foreign national must have set foot in this country to be charged with illegal entry. This offence should be bread and butter stuff for immigration officers."
The Home Office said the immigration cases will now be dealt with and "removal action will be pursued"; for those who have no right to remain in the UK.
The prosecutions of the three crew members – a Latvian and two Ukrainians – will continue.
The wife of one of the migrants told The Daily Mail last night that she was '"very happy" that the charges had been dropped.
Taulant Ajazi was one of the migrants hiding in the ship and is now being held at Yarl's Wood Immigration Removal Centre in Beds.
His wife, Ana Maria, told the paper: "I'm very happy to hear this news. I hope they will release him soon."
Ana, 34, who is currently in Romania added: "I hope they will all be released with documentation so they can live freely."
Taulanti, 31, said he and other migrants are getting ready to launch appeals.
He said: "It is our human right to be able to come here with our families."
A Crown Prosecution Service spokesman said: "We have authorised charges against three people for facilitating illegal entry to the UK.
"We have decided our legal tests for prosecution were not met in relation to the 69 passengers."
The Home Office said it was "disappointed" with the decision as five of the men have already pleaded guilty to unlawful entry and now their convictions are expected to be quashed.
The migrants were originally charged with illegal entry to the UK under Section 24 of the Immigration Act 1971 - which carries up to six months' imprisonment.
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The Act states that "a person arriving in the United Kingdom by ship or aircraft shall... be deemed not to enter the United Kingdom unless and until he disembarks".
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It is understood the boat had sailed from Belgium and was planning to moor up in a small harbour along the East Anglia coastline.
More than 100 officers from the NCA, Border Force and Essex Police were involved in the operation.
