TV antiques dealer and husband left 'feeling like criminals' after £3,000 fine for reporting migrant hiding in their van

26 September 2024, 11:37 | Updated: 26 September 2024, 11:39

A television antiques dealer and her husband have been slapped with a £3,000 fine after informing police that a migrant had snuck into their van as they crossed the French border.

Jane Cave, star of antiques show The Bidding Room, was returning from a buying trip to France when her husband discovered the stowaway in the back of the couple's van.

It's an incident that left the pair feeling like 'criminals', with UK Border Force asserting the couple would not have been fined without "significant evidence".

Ed Masters, who had borrowed the vehicle from a friend for the trip, was returning through Calais with his wife and their van full of furniture.

But when he stepped out of the vehicle to fill in paperwork following lengthy delays at the French port, Mr Masters spotted a man attempting to climb into the back of the unlocked vehicle.

“I shouted, ‘Get out,’ which he duly did and ambled towards the rest of the car park,” Mr Masters told The Telegraph.

After spotting the figure, Mr Masters began shouting at the man - who rapidly fled the scene, before the antiques dealer and her husband continued on their journey back to the UK.

At French passport control a border force officer pulled the vehicle aside and conducted a rough inspected before waving the van through.

It wasn't until the pair reached the A11 near Barton Mills, Suffolk, that they bag hearing bangs coming from the back of the van.

Halting the vehicle, the couple phoned the police to flag there was a suspected stowaway aboard.

However, the young man, described as “dark, shortish, and carrying a mobile phone”, proceeded to flee the scene before the force arrived.

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He was picked up close to a local petrol station shortly after making his escape.

But despite calling Suffolk Constabulary to flag the stowaway and explain events proceeding the migrant's discovery, Mr Masters was told he was responsible for failing to properly secure his vehicle.

A letter arrived from UK Border Force shortly after to inform Mr Masters that he had been fined £3,000 for unknowingly smuggling a migrant into the country.

The Government’s civil penalty scheme means that tourists and commercial companies alike face fines for not properly securing a vehicle.

He was informed that the correct course of action was to inform authorities at the French border in Calais of the earlier attempts made by migrants.

“We all thought we had done the right thing in calling the British police and making them aware of the situation, little did I know of the aftermath of all this,” said Mr Masters.

He claims the incident left the pair feeling like criminals.

“If I had just dropped him in a lay-by and not notified them, we would be £3,000 better off. Utter madness.”

Mr Masters has since apologised for not alerting local police sooner but insists the fine is unfair given his attempts to stop the migrant jumping aboard.

Mr Masters says he faced increased scrutiny from the UK Border Force in the weeks that followed and since been detained four times at different airports following the incident.

He added that the detainments left his wife, who suffers from a rare neurological condition called ataxia, forced to carry heavy baggage alone.

A Home Office spokesman said: “We are fully committed to stopping people from illegally entering the country and cracking down on people smugglers.

“The Clandestine Entrant Civil Penalty Scheme aims to ensure drivers are taking every reasonable step to deter irregular migration and disrupt people smugglers.”

It is understood the fines are only issued when Border Force officers consider they have “significant evidence”.