Illegal immigrants stopped from coming to Redditch (From Redditch Advertiser)

Illegal immigrants stopped from coming to Redditch

11:33am Thursday 2nd October 2008

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UK Border Agency (UKBA) officers in Calais have stopped 13 would-be illegal entrants from coming to Redditch - hidden in a refrigerated lorry full of yoghurt.

The illegal immigrants (11 Eritreans, one Iraqi, and one Somalian) were caught out during a search of the lorry, before it could board a ferry to Dover.

They have now been handed over to the French authorities.

The lorry driver, who was transporting a load of supermarket own-brand ‘natural defence’ yoghurt, was due to deliver the cargo to a distribution depot in town.

UKBA director Tom Dowdall, said: “It’s important we stop would-be illegal immigrants before they reach the UK. That’s why we’ve got hundreds of British immigration officers based at ports in France and Belgium.

“Last year we searched over one million lorries and prevented 18,000 foreign nationals from crossing the English Channel without permission.”

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