Man charged after body of woman found on Calais beach while attempting migrant crossing
People at a vigil at Sunny Sands Beach in Folkestone for the migrants that died
PA
A man arrested by the National Crime Agency as part of an investigation into the death of a woman whose body was found on a beach near Calais has now been charged.
Sudanese national Howmalow Mawumd-Duop, aged 21, is expected to appear before Folkestone Magistrates Court today, charged with facilitating illegal immigration.
The body of a 24-year-old female migrant was found on Sangatte beach near Calais on Tuesday morning.
The NCA and Kent Police have been assisting French authorities in its investigation into her death.
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The Pas-de-Calais region administration said the woman was Eritrean.
An investigating source said: “Her body was found at around 5.40am on Blériot beach, in Calais, following a night of intense activity involving migrants crossing to England.
“Another migrant found her and alerted the authorities. Prosecutors in Boulogne have established that she was a 24-year-old Eritrean who was hoping to claim asylum in the United Kingdom. They have opened a criminal investigation.
“Medical examinations are still being carried out, but she undoubtedly died from drowning after falling off a boat.
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GB NEWS“A request for assistance has been sent to the British authorities, to find witnesses on board the boat she was on. It is believed to have reached the United Kingdom.”
Dozens of migrants have died crossing the Channel in recent months.
Six were killed last month after a boat carrying mainly Afghans sank on the route.
Twenty-seven more drowned in November 2021, including three children.
The latest death comes as Home Secretary Suella Braverman claimed being a woman or LGBT+ was not enough to qualify for asylum in the UK.
Suella Braverman is in the US to deliver her speech on migrationPAShe said: “We will not be able to sustain an asylum system if in effect, simply being gay, or a woman, and fearful of discrimination in your country of origin, is sufficient to qualify for protection.”
Braverman also argued: “Nobody entering the UK by boat from France is fleeing imminent peril ... [and therefore has] no good cause for illegal entry.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made ending the Channel crossing crisis one of his five priorities when he succeeded Liz Truss in No10 last autumn.
Sunak's plans have come under fire amid difficulty and delay.