Teen asylum seeker who piloted mega-dinghy carrying 165 migrants including 31 children to UK is jailed

A TEENAGE asylum seeker who piloted an overcrowded, deflating mega-dinghy across the English Channel with 165 people on board has been jailed. Chan Atak, 19, carried the record number of passengers – including 31 children as young as 14 – on the Channel crossing on July 23. The boat used by Chan Mathok Atak, 19, to transport 165 migrants from France Credit: Reuters Chan Atak was jailed for two years three months at Canterbury Crown Court Credit: Reuters The 14m dinghy had two outboard engines but one was not working, while tubing on the boat had started to deflate, a court heard. Aerial footage shows one person “constantly pumping” to try to re-inflate the rigid-hulled inflatable boat. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! The dinghy also had no navigation, emergency signalling or firefighting equipment, and had “fuel containers and batteries stored together, creating a fire risk”. Atak, from South Sudan, was also picked up on aerial footage operating the boat for 90 minutes wearing a black jacket with an “Italia” logo. The 14m dinghy had only one working engine and tubing which was starting to deflate Credit: Reuters The boat piloted by Atak, which a judge said was ‘inherently dangerous’ Credit: Reuters He then crouched down among other passengers and took off his jacket “to avoid detection as the helmsman”, prosecutor James Harrison said. Atak pleaded guilty to the single offence of endangering others during a Channel crossing, and was jailed for two years and three months at Canterbury Crown Court. The teenager, aided by an Arabic interpreter, wore a t-shirt and a large white rosary around his neck at his sentencing hearing. Judge Sarah Counsell told Atak he played an “important role” in controlling and navigating the vessel, and it was not “fleeting or incidental involvement”. Most read in The Sun She said: “Crossings of this nature are inherently dangerous. “Small inflatable vessels of the type commonly used for these crossings are not designed for offshore sea voyages. “Those who choose to steer such vessels assume responsibility for the safety of those on board.” She added there was no evidence he organised the crossing or that he stood to make money from it. Defending Atak, barrister Audrey Morgan said he’d turned 19 a month before the crossings took place, having “escaped the horrors of South Sudan”. He moved from there to Libya, before escaping to Italy then France, the court heard. The sentence for Atak meant as a foreign national he was liable in principle to automatic deportation back to his country. NCA Senior Investigating Officer John Turner said: “Chan Atak was unimaginably reckless and his actions could have easily resulted in many deaths had this boat not been intercepted. “Not only did he place the lives of 165 migrants in severe peril, this flimsy vessel was entirely unsuitable for crossing one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. “Combating the threat posed by the networks involved in organised immigration crime is one of our biggest priorities, and we currently have more than 100 investigations ongoing.”