Teenager denies piloting dinghy with 167 people on board across channel

A teenager has denied piloting a dinghy carrying 167 people across the English Channel.

Chan Mathok Atak, 19, from South Sudan, is charged with endangering another during a journey by sea to the UK after a crossing on Thursday.

He appeared at Margate Magistrates' Court for a short hearing on Monday.

Prosecutor Lucie Fish told the court a rigid-hulled inflatable boat departed the French coast on Thursday, heading towards Dover with 167 migrants on board.

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The vessel was intercepted by Border Force agents and Atak is alleged to have been one of the two pilots, she told the court.

Border Security Command was pictured towing the boat - dubbed a "mega dinghy" by the media - when it arrived in Dover on Thursday afternoon.

It was estimated to be about 13m (42ft) long - the length of a standard bus.

The vessel was of poor quality, overcrowded, and "appeared to be deflating upon interception", the prosecutor said.

When asked if he wanted to enter a plea to the charge, Atak told the court: "I wasn't the pilot."

District Judge William Nelson remanded the defendant into custody. He is set to appear at Canterbury Crown Court on 24 August.

It is understood no other person is being charged in relation to this incident.

The number of people on board the vessel broke the previous record set in July, when 128 people crossed from France to the UK in one boat.

Home Office figures show more than 13,000 arrivals have been recorded this year.

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