Migrants stuck in lorry survive on a diet of Belgian chocolates
ELEVEN migrants who were trapped in the back of a lorry survived by eating the “expensive” Belgian chocolate it was transporting, it was claimed.
Ten Iraqi nationals – including three children under the age of 15 – and one Afghan national were discovered when the lorry pulled into a lay-by and people in a nearby café heard shouting.
Police arrived but called the fire service for help to open the lorry from Europe because the locks had been glued shut, onlookers said.
The café owner at the layby on the A303 near Warminster, Wilts, said the migrants had been eating “very expensive Belgian chocolate” being transported in the lorry.
They were medically assessed and were held on suspicion of illegally entering the UK, police said. Dave Thomas, the owner of Willoughby Hedge Café, said: “I was in the café with three drivers when someone came in and said that there was banging on the side of one of the lorries.
“A couple of the drivers come in every Saturday coming back from the Continent and so once we were told of the banging, they went straight away to the back of the lorry to try to open the doors, but to no avail. We all knew straight away what the banging was. It has happened here twice before in the past 15 years I believe.
“They get them into the lorry, replace the locks and then damage and super glue such that they cannot be opened. They were very lucky as this trailer was a refrigerated unit, but the section that they and the chocolate was in was at normal temperature.”
Police said the children were aged between six and 15, and crew from Trowbridge fire station said a baby was among the group.
A police spokesman added: “The driver was unable to open the doors due to finding a lock had been damaged, so the fire crew had to use cutting equipment to gain entry.”
The Home Office confirmed Immigration Enforcement was called to deal with the migrants.