A man who attempted to smuggle a group of people into the UK hidden under tyres in the back of his van has been jailed for more than four years.

Italian national Mauro Michetti, 54, was stopped by Border Force officers at Dover’s Eastern Docks in the early hours of October 22 this year.

The officers searched the vehicle and found the seven men hidden under a pile of old tyres that Michetti claimed were bought in Brussels to sell in London.

The group had been concealed in a boxed section of the van underneath the tyres. They were all Albanian men and aged between 27 and 43.

Michetti was arrested on suspicion of assisting illegal entry into the UK and the investigation was passed to officers from Immigration Enforcement’s Criminal and Financial Investigation (CFI) team.

He was charged with assisting unlawful immigration into the UK contrary to Section 25 (1) of the Immigration Act 1971.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said: “This was a reckless and dangerous attempt to smuggle people into the UK and shows the lengths criminals are prepared to go.

“We are doing all we can to bring the organised criminals behind this dangerous trade to justice.

“Our asylum system is fundamentally broken and enables this international criminal trade in people. We are determined to fix it and will bring forward legislation to do so next year.”

Michetti appeared at Canterbury Crown Court on Wednesday, December 4, where he was jailed for four years and four months, having pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing.

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