Couple fined £3k after two migrants found on van

A couple has been fined £3,000 after unknowingly driving two Sudanese migrants through Calais in a campervan.

Lisa Russell and her partner Geoff Evans from Kent were stopped by Border Force officers in France as they returned from a short family break last October.

Ms Russell told the BBC they had "no idea" when the man and teenager stowed themselves into the bike rack of their van, but believed they hid themselves under the bike cover before they arrived at Calais port.

A Home Office spokesperson says they "understand that recipients of penalties may disagree with the circumstances of the fine".

In a similar case, Adrian and Joanne Fenton, from Essex, had a £1,500 fine overturned on appeal after they boarded Le Shuttle from Calais to Folkestone in Kent last October after travelling around France.

Mr Fenton discovered a young man, who claimed to be from Sudan, zipped inside the cover of a bike rack on the back of their motorhome.

He contacted the police, who dealt with the incident, but the couple later received a fine.

In her case, Ms Russell said: "We came out of a shopping centre and saw a lady was guarding her van and our van. She told us some one had tried to steal our bikes."

Ms Russell said after leaving the shopping centre, they felt "uneasy" and decided to go to the docks because it would be "safer".

"After Border Force officers inspected our van at the port, they said we could go. Just as we pulled away, they told us to stop as we had two stowaways on our bike rack over the bike cover", Ms Russell said.

Ms Russell said they remained at Calais for three hours while authorities dealt with the incident.

Four months later, the couple have received a fine from Home Office.

A spokesperson for the Home Office says they are "fully committed" in stopping people from illegally entering the country and "cracking down on people smugglers".

"The Clandestine Entrant Civil Penalty Scheme is there to ensure drivers take every reasonable step to deter irregular migration," they added.

"The option to appeal and trigger a review is made clear in supporting documents."

Ms Russell said: "Who's got a spare £3,000 these days and for something we didn't do?

"We feel like the victims and it's really unfair."

She said they had already written to the Home Office to appeal against the fine.

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