A man was found shot dead on Friday inside a UK-registered tradesman’s van that was carrying irregular migrants, parked at a rest stop on a motorway in northern France.
The vehicle was discovered around 30 kilometres north of the city of Troyes, about 300 kilometres from the Channel coast, according to the local prosecutor’s office. The body of the 47-year-old man was found at around 5am, seated inside the van with a gunshot wound to the head. The van carried British licence plates.
Police also found about ten foreign nationals inside the vehicle who were in French territory irregularly. Neither their nationalities nor that of the deceased man were disclosed.
Shots fired as the van stopped to park
A preliminary investigation suggests the shots were fired in the Champ l’Epe rest stop as the van was parking. Several people then fled the scene. A suspect believed to have been present when the shooting happened was arrested early on Friday, said prosecutor Isabelle Verissimo of Troyes.
The law enforcement office in Reims has taken charge of the investigation. The Troyes prosecutor’s office announced that a criminal case would be opened on Saturday covering murder, attempted murder, unauthorised possession of a weapon, and charges of aiding the irregular entry, movement and residence of foreigners in France as part of an organised group, as well as human trafficking as part of an organised group.
A volatile migration route
The discovery underlines the dangers of the migrant routes running through northern France toward the Channel. Vehicles bound for the United Kingdom are regularly used by people-smuggling networks, and authorities on both sides of the Channel have faced pressure to disrupt the criminal groups behind them.
French investigators have not yet said whether the killing was linked to a dispute among trafficking groups or a separate altercation. The investigation is continuing.
Source: Dawn