Dutch authorities find 11 migrants hidden on yacht, Arrest two for people smuggling

The Marechaussee intercepted a sailing yacht on the North Sea near Ouddorp with eleven Albanian people onboard. The branch of the Dutch military boarded the vessel late Friday night or early Saturday morning. Two sailors from Ukraine were arrested for people smuggling.

The yacht was on its way to the United Kingdom.

“Several sailing ships belonging to human smugglers have been intercepted off the Dutch coast recently,” a spokesperson for the Marechaussee said on Saturday. “Therefore, we are paying extra attention and working closely with various other services, such as customs officials and the Coast Guard, in the hope of nipping the act of people smuggling across Dutch waters in the bud.”

Many people have been trying to get to the United Kingdom illegally recently, according to the spokesperson. “First, we mainly saw people climbing aboard container ships from IJmuiden, Hoek van Holland and the Europoort. Now, we see more and more people onboard of sailing ships from people smugglers.”

In samenwerking met @Kustwacht_nl, @Politie_Rdam en @Douane is vannacht een zeiljacht op zee thv Ouddorp onderschept waarop 11 Albanezen verstopt zaten. Onze recherche doet verder onderzoek, de 2 schippers uit Oekraïne zijn aangehouden voor mensensmokkel. pic.twitter.com/txIXv1IB6T

— Koninklijke Marechaussee (@Marechaussee) September 25, 2021