His explanations did not convince the courts.
A Senegalese man was found guilty by a British court on Monday of manslaughter after the deaths of four other migrants crossing the Channel from France in December 2022.
Ibrahima B., who according to British justice is over 18 but whose precise age is uncertain, was found guilty of manslaughter and aiding illegal entry into the United Kingdom at the Canterbury court (south from England).
His sentencing hearing is scheduled to take place Friday.
Four migrants, including a teenager, died when their boat sank while attempting to make the dangerous crossing in one of the busiest straits in the world.
Thirty-nine others were rescued.
A story doubted by the prosecution
During the trial, one of the migrants on board the boat described the screams and attempts to call for help, before a fishing boat came to their rescue.
The defendant claimed that the smugglers had forced him to take control of the inflatable boat, without convincing the prosecution.
According to his account, he had initially agreed to cross for free, but changed his mind when faced with too many migrants who had to board.
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According to the prosecution, the defendant claimed that he had piloted boats in the past and was able to cross without paying, while the other passengers had paid thousands of euros to the smugglers.
“The boat he piloted was never designed to undertake a crossing in the world's busiest shipping lane and was almost invisible to other boats,” said Libby Clark of the prosecutor's office.
“Any reasonable person would have recognized that operating such a poorly equipped and overloaded boat in such dangerous circumstances posed a clear risk to passengers,” she continued.
Nearly 30,000 migrants made the crossing last year, after a record of 45,000 in 2022.