Iranian refugee acquitted of smuggling slams UK asylum policies

An Iranian man’s acquittal over smuggling charges highlights the flaws in the UK’s plans to overhaul its asylum system.

London, United Kingdom – Fouad Kakaei laughed when British authorities showed him photographs of him steering an inflatable dinghy over the Channel from France. “It was ridiculous,” he said, referring to the moment he was questioned at the port of Dover in late December 2019. “I already told them I was the driver, I said so from the beginning.” Speaking to Al Jazeera in north London, near his temporary hotel accommodation, he added: “They didn’t bring any evidence other than two pictures of me driving the boat and they said I had two SIM cards. This was given as evidence to prove I was a smuggler.”