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| Pregnant mum guilty of trying to smuggle 12 migrants in van | Pregnant mum guilty of trying to smuggle 12 migrants in van |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| A woman has been found guilty of trying to smuggle 12 Vietnamese migrants into the UK in a van loaded with tyres. | A woman has been found guilty of trying to smuggle 12 Vietnamese migrants into the UK in a van loaded with tyres. |
| Katy Bethel was a passenger in the van driven by her then-partner Aaron Harris when they were arrested on 4 July 2015 at Coquelles' Eurotunnel check-in. | |
| Four men, five women and three children were found hidden among the tyres after a Border Force officer spotted a pair of legs sticking out of one of them. | Four men, five women and three children were found hidden among the tyres after a Border Force officer spotted a pair of legs sticking out of one of them. |
| Harris, 33, admitted assisting unlawful immigration at Maidstone Crown Court. | Harris, 33, admitted assisting unlawful immigration at Maidstone Crown Court. |
| Harris and Bethel will be sentenced on 11 September. | |
| Live: More on this story and other news from Kent | Live: More on this story and other news from Kent |
| Bethel, 28, who was six months pregnant with her fourth child at the time, claimed she had no idea the migrants were in the vehicle. | Bethel, 28, who was six months pregnant with her fourth child at the time, claimed she had no idea the migrants were in the vehicle. |
| She told the court she and Harris had gone on a day trip, looking for a beach, but had got lost and left the van by the roadside as they went for a walk. | She told the court she and Harris had gone on a day trip, looking for a beach, but had got lost and left the van by the roadside as they went for a walk. |
| The prosecution accused her of talking "nonsense". | The prosecution accused her of talking "nonsense". |
| The jury heard that in the four hours the pair were in France, they sent and received 67 messages and calls to and from an unknown number. | The jury heard that in the four hours the pair were in France, they sent and received 67 messages and calls to and from an unknown number. |
| Bethel, of Dial Road, Gillingham in Kent, said Harris, the father of two of her children, was using her phone on the trip to make calls and texts and she was unaware of their contents. | Bethel, of Dial Road, Gillingham in Kent, said Harris, the father of two of her children, was using her phone on the trip to make calls and texts and she was unaware of their contents. |
| The couple were returning from Calais to Folkestone when they were stopped by customs officers. | The couple were returning from Calais to Folkestone when they were stopped by customs officers. |
| Both were charged with aiding and abetting unlawful immigration. | Both were charged with aiding and abetting unlawful immigration. |
| Harris had previously pleaded guilty to the charge. | Harris had previously pleaded guilty to the charge. |