Nottingham: Four charged over inflatable boat migrant smuggling

Belgian police prevented this boat leaving the coast of Flanders on 30 October

Four people have been charged in connection with a foiled attempt to smuggle migrants into the UK.

Twelve migrants and two British men were previously detained on 30 October when Belgian police stopped a speedboat leaving the coast of Flanders.

Four men, aged 44, 46, 48 and 51, have since been charged with smuggling offences.

They have been remanded in custody ahead of a hearing at Nottingham Crown Court on 29 March.

The arrests were made as part of a National Crime Agency (NCA) investigation into a group suspected of organising a series of people smuggling runs to the UK from Europe, including a number of crossing events last year.

Investigators claim they used a boat to travel to Belgium to collect migrants, landing at Margate in Kent.