Morning:
10°c
Afghan illegal immigrant sneaks into Sandhurst
Sri Carmichael, Consumer Affairs Reporter18 Jun 2009
An Afghan illegal immigrant smuggled himself into Sandhurst by hiding in the lavatory stairwell of an Army coach, it emerged today.
The stowaway evaded security at Britain's top military academy and was apparently not spotted by officers on board the vehicle either.
It was only once the bus was inside the Sandhurst compound that the 20-year-old man was noticed.
Army chiefs and soldiers are said to be “incandescent” at the security breach, raging that the illegal man could have been a Taliban suicide bomber.
It is believed the man may have slipped on to the coach at Calais in France, after it had driven officers from the 28 Engineer Regiment's base at Hameln, in Germany, on Tuesday. He also would have dodged Britain's border controls at Dover.
A military source said: “This is an extremely serious breach of security. He could have smuggled a bomb inside Sandhurst - or could even have been a suicide bomber, which would have been catastrophic.”
The head of the Army, General Sir Richard Dannatt has ordered an urgent inquiry.
All vehicles entering the military academy in Camberley, Surrey, are supposed to be searched at the gate by armed soldiers. But it is thought the coach was waved through with minimal checks.
The Afghan was discovered by as two officers left the bus. Police were called and he was taken to a prison in Maidenhead, Berkshire.
HE is expected to be sent to a detention centre and will be deported unless he applies for asylum.
Shadow Immigration Minister Damian Green said: “Even after all the security disasters of recent years, it still beggars belief to find that an illegal immigrant can not only smuggle himself into this country, but into Sandhurst on an Army bus.”
