Men accused of people smuggling appear in court

Four men have appeared in court charged with assisting unlawful immigration.

The charges came after a boat was spotted on the beach at Holland-on-Sea, near Clacton, Essex, in July.

Illia Prendi, 57, Konrad Dabrowski, 25, Damian Ciuron, 41, and Christian Albano, 45, all appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court by video link from the city's prison.

They did not enter pleas and will be back in court in September.

Polish nationals Dabrowski and Ciuron, both from Bradford, were arrested on the beach by Essex Police on 1 July.

Albano, the boat's pilot, who is Italian, was arrested at sea by Border Security Command, which is part of the Home Office.

Albanian national Illia Prendi, of no fixed abode, was arrested at a later date.

All four defendants face one count of assisting unlawful immigration.

In court, they confirmed their identities but did not enter pleas.

All of them were remanded in custody until their next appearance in court on 3 September.

Immigration Enforcement, also part of the Home Office, has been handling the detention of six others who were on board the boat.

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