The body of a man was found on Wednesday August 19 on a beach in Sangatte (Pas-de-Calais), after the rescue at sea of a young Sudanese migrant, castaway from an inflatable boat, who declared his companion of trip disappeared, said a judicial source.
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Found by the police around 7:00 am, the body " has not yet been identified, " Philippe Sabatier, deputy prosecutor of Boulogne-sur-mer, told AFP, confirming information from the Voix du Nord . " It will be necessary to determine whether it was a migrant, but according to the first elements we think so ", he explained, establishing a " link between this discovery and the rescue " of the young migrant, " Who was rescued at sea during the night after the sinking of his small boat ".
Aged 16 and of Sudanese nationality, the young man " indicated that he had attempted to cross the Channel in the company of another person, so it is very likely that this missing person corresponds to the body found ", a detailed M. Sabatier. According to the young man's statements, the missing person " would be the same age as him ". The prosecution opened an investigation into " the cause of death ".
" This unbearable drama mobilizes us again + with @GDarmanin against the smugglers who take advantage of the distress of human beings! », Reacted on Twitter Marlène Schiappa, Minister Delegate in charge of citizenship.
Since January 1, at least 960 migrants have been intercepted by French authorities after trying to cross the Channel using makeshift boats or swimming, according to an AFP count. Children are regularly among the castaways. On Saturday, for example, the authorities rescued 31 migrants including three children and an 18-month-old infant.
In 2019, 2,758 migrants attempting these crossings were rescued by the French and British authorities, four times more than in 2018, according to the maritime prefecture. Four migrants were found dead at sea and on a French beach.