Sixteen immigrants were arrested after being found stuffed into the backs of two HGVs at the M25’s Clacket Lane services late Tuesday evening, October 3rd. Surrey Road Policing officers swooped on the vehicles just after 7pm, calling in Kent Police for backup to assist with the operation.
A fleet of police vans and South East Coast Ambulance crews arrived at the motorway services to assist the exhausted migrants. Some were found using duvets and sleeping bags to keep warm during their cramped journey. The ambulance service reported that those rescued suffered from minor ailments.
It is not yet clear if the lorry drivers have been arrested, but they are fully cooperating with police inquiries. Surrey Police have involved Immigration Enforcement, who are now handling the case.
Surrey Police have a history with migrant hauls on the M25. In November 2015, 18 suspected illegal immigrants were caught fleeing a lorry on the motorway’s hard shoulder. In October 2016, officers discovered 14 adults and a child hidden in a similar way.
A spokesperson for South East Coast Ambulance Service said: “We were called at about 7.20pm to reports of a group of people in the back of two lorries. We assessed those found, some with minor ailments.”
Originally published by UKNIP.
