Channel boat deaths: Man in court over four deaths at sea

Forensic tents were erected at the RNLI station at the Port of Dover

A man has appeared in court after four people died as they attempted to cross the English Channel in a small boat.

The deaths last December happened when a dinghy ran into trouble off the Kent coast. Thirty-nine people were rescued.

Ibrahima Bah, 19, of no fixed address, appeared at Folkestone Magistrates' Court via videolink, charged with four counts of manslaughter.

He was remanded in custody and is next due to appear at Canterbury Crown Court on 15 May although the date may change.

Authorities were alerted in the early hours of 14 December to reports that the small boat was in difficulty off the coast of Dungeness, 30 miles west of Dover.

Temperatures had dropped to 1C overnight and a yellow weather warning was in place across Kent at the time.

Kent Police said officers were continuing their work to establish the identity of the four who died and locate their next-of-kin.

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