Six years for people trafficker

A Kidderminster member of a "vast" people smuggling gang who made a fortune from the "sadness and despair" of Chinese immigrants, has been jailed for six years.

John Ashcroft, aged 60, who left Chester Road to live in Belgium, was convicted of the conspiracy charge at an earlier trial.

He collected "illegals" from France or Belgium, hid them in the boot of his car and brought them here.

He was arrested in September 2007 in Dunkirk after two immigrants were found in his boot. One needed medical attention.

Once in this country, after being smuggled on boats and in trucks, dozens of "human commodities" were handed to fellow conspirators and driven to London, where many ended up being exploited, working long hours for paltry wages.

Passing sentence, Judge Christopher Hardy said: "Facilitating illegal entry into the United Kingdom has always been a very serious offence, in spite of the present perception of the somewhat casual approach at UK border controls.

"An example of this occurred during the course of the trial of Mr Ashcroft when the jury was somewhat bemused to be told that three Chinese illegal immigrants, who were arrested in south-east London having emerged from the boot of his car, were released from Lewisham police station on an undertaking to present themselves to an immigration centre at Croydon at a later date. They have not been seen since."

"The consequences of this sort of offence are, of course, very much more serious in times of rising unemployment and the ever-present threat from terrorism."

Southwark Crown Court heard mobile phone evidence enabled investigators to "piece it all together".

Confiscations proceedings will be held next year.