Video footage from a British haulier’s DVS camera system has recorded the moment that a group migrants stole items from the side locker of its truck, one of whom then slipped inside in the hope of reaching his desired destination.
Whites Transport Services published the DVS cam footage earlier today, which was recorded in the early hours of this morning at a Belgian petrol station on the E42 between Lille and Tournai – about a 90-minute drive from the port of Calais.
The footage shows how a group of 6-7 men approach the lorry while its driver is in the petrol station shop. During this time, one man prises open the truck’s side locker while others steal empty trays and a box. One of the group then hides himself in the side locker while a colleague slams the door shut.
The alarming incident shows just how easy it would be for any lorry driver to be carrying a migrant across Europe without actually knowing anyone else was onboard the vehicle.
Image: still of cam footage from Whites Transport Services
Fortunately, in this instance, the driver was able to avoid any unintended consequences or trouble with the authorities. On his return from the petrol station shop, he could see something had gone awry. As he closer inspected his vehicle, the man hiding onboard realised he had been caught, and promptly got out.
Commenting on the incident on Facebook, Pete White, whose haulage company owns the truck, said “Driver & Hauliers are fined & convicted for this happening. We are victims, so how is it right that we get fined & punished for immigrants damaging our equipment & the goods we carry.”
The incident follows a recent policy document released by the UK Government that contains various measures, including huge fines for HGV drivers, intended to prevent immigrants reaching the UK in trucks. Some of the measures in the document have been criticised by both the RHA and Logistics UK.
Chris Yarsley, Policy Manager at Logistics UK, recently urged the government to recognise that drivers are also often the victims of people smuggling gangs:
People smuggling and clandestine attempts by desperate individuals to enter the UK are a humanitarian crisis which governments need to address on both sides of the Channel. The facilitation of illegal immigration into the UK by criminal gangs is a significant challenge for the haulage industry, with desperate individuals and organised crime groups actively targeting the vehicles of professional drivers and hauliers. Operators remain determined to play their part in bringing the organised crime organisations which prey on these innocent migrants to justice, but the government must recognise that responsible operators and drivers are themselves the victims of these groups. It is vital that government recognises the regulated, industry standard schemes already in place, such as AEOS and Customs Seals which demonstrate that hauliers have implemented high security measures.
Moreover, Mr Yarsley believes that in the event truckers are not protected, yet more drivers will give up the profession – making the current driver shortage even worse:
Logistics UK strongly opposes the government’s proposal to expand the existing penalty scheme to any haulier found with an illegal migrant in their vehicle, regardless of their compliance with load security standards or accreditation schemes. When an individual takes all reasonable measures to mitigate the risk of illegal entrants, it is unfair to deprive the vehicle operator of any defence and simply issue an automatic penalty, the cost of which will be prohibitive for many smaller operators. The detection systems used in ports are not themselves fully effective in locating people hidden on board a vehicle,; it is unrealistic to expect hauliers and drivers, who are neither trained security staff nor immigration officials, to outperform government agencies. These proposals could have a significant impact on supply chain operations by deterring businesses from bringing goods into the UK, in addition to reducing the attractiveness of HGV driving as a career option, at a time when the industry is suffering deeply from a worker shortage.
Photo credit: Whites Transport Services Ltd