Stowaway found on Satfford-bound coach

An illegal immigrant was found hiding inside the engine of a coach on its way to the West Midlands from Germany.

UK Border Agency officers discovered the man, originally from Palestine, hidden in between the pipes of a Happy Days coach's engine as part of a desperate attempt to sneak through the French border into the UK on October 30.

As part of a routine operation, UK Border Agency officers at Calais stopped and examined the coach, which was on its way to Stafford with passengers returning from a twin town event.

The coach firm and driver may now have to pay a hefty fine and the stowaway has been taken into custody.

Carole Upshall, the UK Border Agency's Director for Border Force South & Europe, said: "Finds such as these highlight the desperate measures some people will take to try and get to Britain."

Neil Austin, owner of Happy Days Coaches, based at Greyfriars in Stafford, said the coach had been bringing back Great Haywood and Colwich Twinning Association members following their trip to Rimbach.

"On the day they started from Brussels. Our driver did a walk round check on the coach and checked it was secure and looked inside the engine compartment.

"He picked up the passengers from the hotel and was heading back via Calais. They were stuck for half an hour in a traffic line just outside Calais and we think it was there that the man got in.

"When he pulled in for the check by border officers they looked inside the engine compartment which was still locked and spotted what they thought at first was a coat."

Mr Austin said it was the first time an illegal immigrant had attempted to get on one of their coaches.

"We include doing all the checks in our driver training."