Romanian who smuggled boy into Britain in a suitcase is jailed for 18 months

A SMUGGLER caught trying to sneak a Vietnamese teenager into Britain in a suitcase has been jailed for 18 months.

Romanian Andrei Iancu, 20, was arrested after the stowaway was discovered in the boot of his car at Dover.

The boy, believed to be 16, was critically ill with severe dehydration and high blood pressure and began having fits. He was taken to hospital but made a full recovery.

Canterbury Crown Court heard Iancu, pictured, met the teenager at a service station and agreed to smuggle him into the UK for 200 euros (£177).

Iancu’s Skoda Octavia, with Romanian plates, was stopped by UK Border Force in a routine check after arriving on the ferry from Calais on May 30.

Officers opened the boot and found several suitcases and bags of crisps.

Prosecutor James Bloomer said: ‘It was only when some of the bags were moved that the officers noticed an arm protruding.’

Iancu, a student at University of Transylvania, initially claimed he accepted 500 euros to smuggle the migrant, but later changed the amount to 200 euros.

He said he used Google’s translation system to communicate with the youth.

Iancu, who pleaded guilty to one count of people smuggling, was ordered to pay a surcharge of £140. He will serve his sentence in a young offenders’ institution.

Tanveer Qureshi, defending, asked Judge Simon James if any prison sentence could be suspended.

He said: ‘It was for financial gain but it was not part of a sophisticated operation. No other people were involved.’

Judge Simon James said people smuggling ‘exploits the vulnerable and the desperate’ and courts must impose deterrent sentences.

He told Iancu: ‘You were motivated by making a quick profit.’

The teenager is now thought to be in the care of Kent social services.