Mum-of-four found guilty of trying to smuggle 12 Vietnamese people through Channel Tunnel
A MOTHER-of-four tried to smuggle 12 Vietnamese people through the Channel Tunnel – hiding them among stacked tyres in a van, a court heard.
Katy Bethel tried to smuggle 12 Vietnamese people through the Channel Tunnel in a van
Katy Bethel, 28, was six months pregnant with her youngest daughter when she tried to get five women, four men and three youngsters under 12 past border control officials in Coquelles, France.
Bethel was a front passenger while her boyfriend and the father of two of her children, Aaron Harris, was driving.
The illegal entrants were spotted when an officer at the UK control zone saw a pair of jean-clad legs sticking out of the piled tyres in the Mercedes Sprinter van.
The illegal entrants were spotted by an officer at the UK control zone
Bethel, from Gillingham, had denied assisting unlawful immigration on July 4, 2015, but was found guilty during the court case at Maidstone Crown Court.
She was released on bail.
Her conditions of bail are residence, surrendering of passport and not applying for international travel documents.
Harris, also from Gillingham, admitted the same charge ahead of Bethel’s trial and is currently in custody.
The pair will be sentenced at court on September 11.