Small boat migrant shot dead by suspected people smugglers on French coast

A small boat migrant has been found dead after being shot seven times by suspected people smugglers, with a murder enquiry launched. The deceased man, in his late teens or early 20s, is the latest victim of a surge of shootings around a camp at Loon-Plage, on the outskirts of Dunkirk.

Investigating sources revealed on Monday that the man was hit by seven bullets. The camp was full of people hoping to get to Britain when he was confronted by gunmen. Around twenty bullets were fired in all, and seven entered the man’s body. Emergency service workers were at the scene but tragically couldn't save him.

The Dunkirk prosecutor visited the crime scene, which was blocked off and surrounded by armed police. The hunt was launched for the suspected people smugglers responsible for the murder. This incident is part of a series of heinous shootings around Loon-Plage beach, where small inflatable boats with migrants onboard regularly set off for Britain.

In June, a Sudanese man was shot dead and a mother-and-child wounded by suspected people smugglers at the same camp. The violence is said to be linked to people smugglers 'settling scores' against those who do not pay them. The cost of a single voyage to Britain in a small boat is now as much as £1500 cash.

In December, a gun enthusiast was charged with the murders of five men, including UK-bound migrants around Loon Plage. Frenchman Paul Domis, 22, was remanded in custody after confessing to a lethal shooting spree in the area. The Loon-Plage camp is an illegal one but growing every day as migrants from all over the world arrive.

In the first half of this year, some 20,000 migrants crossed the English Channel to the UK, up almost 50 per cent on the corresponding period last year. Numbers of what the British government calls 'irregular migrants' keep rising, with 638 arriving on the coast of England in the seven days to last Friday. France’s Interior Minister pledges tougher action against the highly organised smuggling gangs operating in northern France.

According to the source: The Sun.