Man smuggled immigrants into UK 'as a humanitarian'

French national Enrique Figueroa, 46, said he paid out of his own

pocket to bring the group of Asian men and women to Britain for humanitarian reasons, but that was not accepted in court.

His co-defendant, skipper Nelson Bazin, 23, also from France, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for his "subordinate" role in the scheme.

Hove Crown Court heard that the pair arrived at Brighton Marina on June 27 last year after sailing from Dieppe on a motorised yacht named Pelican that Figueroa had chartered.

Prosecutor Irena Ray-Crosby said that after it had berthed, other yacht owners began to notice "a large number of men and women of oriental or Chinese appearance alighting the yacht".

She said they watched as they walked to a nearby bus stop with Figueroa, then boarded a bus which left the East Sussex marina.

She said the harbour manager received a number of calls and notified the police, immigration authorities and the Coastguard but they were too late to stop the group boarding a train to London at Brighton station.

The court heard that it was not known what happened to the illegal immigrants after Figueroa saw them off at the station. He and Bazin were arrested at the marina two days later.

In subsequent police interviews Bazin claimed he did not know the immigrants were on board the yacht and said he only became suspicious part-way through the journey.

Recorder Peter Gower QC said he accepted that he only became involved in order to gain experience in skippering a vessel.

Figueroa was described as the "prime mover" who organised the operation. His defence counsel, Jeffrey Lamb, said that after working as a journalist and human rights activist in France campaigning for the rights of illegal immigrants, he decided it would be more effective to physically transport them to a better life.

"His only goal was to get them to this country safely," he said, although he also admitted the defendant was "idealistic and naive".

Given the chance to explain himself, Figueroa, who learned to speak English during the time he has spent on remand, said: "I know it's illegal but I'm happy that these guys have a new chance in their lives. I took absolutely no money from them."

But after hearing of Figueroa's previous conviction for an armed robbery, Recorder Gower said there was an "inherent unlikelihood of you being an armed robber turned philanthropist".

The court heard that 770.70 was found on the boat, which Figueroa admitted belonged to him, but there was no further evidence of money changing hands.