Sudanese national pleads guilty to endangering life in English Channel migrant deaths

Alnour Mohamed Ali, a 27-year-old Sudanese national, pleaded guilty on Tuesday at Canterbury Crown Court to endangering life after four migrants drowned while trying to board a small boat in France on 9 April.

Two men and two women died after being swept away by strong currents at Equihen-Plage, near Boulogne-sur-Mer. French government official Francois-Xavier Lauch said the four were "already quite far into the sea" before they died, adding that the currents in that part of the sea "can be dangerous".

More than 40 people were rescued off the coast of northern France from around 07:30 local time that morning. Two children were among those taken to hospital as a precaution, while another person was treated for hypothermia. The National Crime Agency (NCA) said 74 people "sailed on to the UK".

Aided by an Arabic interpreter, Ali pleaded guilty to piloting a boat which "thereby created a risk of death or serious personal injury to others aboard the boat". He also admitted knowing he would arrive in the UK without valid entry clearance.

"The tragic deaths illustrate again how perilous these crossings are and the callous nature of the criminals organising them," Emma Brown, from the NCA, said.

Ali will be sentenced on June 10 alongside the first man, an Afghan national, convicted of the same offence under the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act 2025. That act introduced a new criminal offence of endangering another during a journey by sea to the UK from France, Belgium or the Netherlands.

A total of 8,565 people crossed the English Channel by small boat from France between 1 January and 25 May 2026, down 37% on the same period the previous year.