Paris court finds 13 men guilty over deadliest migrant Channel crossing on record

Fourteen men faced charges including involuntary homicide linked to the deadliest English Channel migrant crossing on record, when 31 people lost their lives in 2021.PARIS (CN) — On Wednesday, the Paris Criminal Court found 13 men guilty of charges including involuntary homicide for their role in the tragic sinking of an inflatable dinghy that left 31 people dead in 2021.Just before delivering the verdict, the presiding judge — the court asked journalists not to publish her name — said investigations and debates shed light on a situation with “tragic consequences,” and the “individuals profiting from the serious vulnerability” of migrants.Since early September, the court has tried 14 men over their involvement in what became the deadliest English Channel migrant crossing on record. They faced charges including involuntary homicide, involuntary injury, assisting the irregular entry, movement or stay of a foreign national within the territory of a state party to the protocol against the smuggling of migrants, endangering others and assisting the irregular entry, movement or stay of a foreign national in France as part of an organized group.Thirteen of the defendants were handed prison sentences ranging from six months to the maximum of 10 years, many of which were suspended or to be served wearing an electronic bracelet, and one man was acquitted due to a lack of evidence. Six were found guilty of involuntary homicide.Only one man was handcuffed and escorted out of the courtroom by police officers; victims’ family members testified that he was the “right-hand man” of the network’s leader. On Wednesday, the presiding judge said she was convinced by this, which was corroborated by phone records. She also condemned that he presented himself as a “simple migrant” during the trial, which was “very far from the actual reality.”The court also rejected his request to reimburse roughly $1,700 in lawyer fees; during his testimony on Sept. 11, the court learned he had threatened five lawyers, which is why he didn’t have legal representation. He was sentenced to eight years behind bars.The 113 plaintiffs were largely victims’ family members. Nine traveled from Erbil, in Iraqi Kurdistan, to testify Sept. 8 and 9. One father cried as he begged the court to locate his son’s body, “even if there’s only a finger left.”FILE - A boat thought to carry migrants is escorted by a vessel from the French Gendarmerie Nationale in the English Channel off Wimereux beach, France, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Nicolas Garriga, File)On the night of Nov. 23, 2021, 33 migrants gathered on the shores of Calais in northern France to cross into the U.K. They had paid smugglers thousands of U.S. dollars for spots on a roughly 20-by-7-foot inflatable dinghy and were given life jackets that did not meet buoyancy standards for rough seas.On Wednesday, the presiding judge said it was clear that the boat was overloaded, people were equipped with inadequate lifejackets and the motor was faulty.A few hours into the journey, the boat began taking on water. Migrants made multiple distress calls to French and U.K. services that went unanswered, prompting a separate, ongoing investigation into French military personnel for failing to help people in danger.The two survivors told the court the water was freezing, currents were strong and most aboard could not swim. They survived by clinging to debris. Mohammad I., one of the survivors, said he knew he had to keep moving so the cold would not stop his heart.“We couldn’t save those drowning next to us, otherwise we’d drown with them,” he said on Sept. 8. “Everyone was a bit everywhere in the water.”Roughly 12 hours after the initial distress calls, a fishing vessel spotted the bright orange lifejackets carrying lifeless bodies through the water.“In the morning with the first light of day, I could see how everyone was immobile, all of the women and children,” Mohammad I. told the court.The court pressed defendants on their roles in organizing housing for the migrants, transporting materials and ultimately loading them onto the boat. Many had been trying to get into the U.K. themselves; one had family members who died in a separate crossing, and expressed his condolences to the victims’ relatives.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads