
Yacht carrying suspected illegal migrants intercepted off Isle of Wight coast
The boat had travelled from northern France and was picked up off the coast of the Isle of Wight and escorted into Gosport Marina in Hampshire by a Border Force cutter on Sunday 20 July.
It was part of an operation led by the National Crime Agency (NCA).
The crew of the vessel, Ukrainian nationals aged 43 and 37, were arrested on suspicion of facilitating illegal immigration.
Five passengers, four Albanian nationals and a Vietnamese national, were arrested for immigration offences.
All seven are now being questioned by NCA investigators.
NCA Senior Investigating Officer, Julian Harriman, said: "This operation was part of an ongoing NCA investigation led jointly with French judicial authorities and Gendarmerie Nationale, which has been supported by Border Force.
"Those arrested remain in custody.
"Tackling people smuggling gangs remains a priority for both France and the United Kingdom and we are determined to do all we can to target, disrupt and dismantle the criminal networks involved."

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