People-smuggler made £173,000 sending migrants onto dinghy that burst into flames - after piling 173 people onto boat designed to carry just 25

By RORY TINGLE, HOME AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT and PETER ALLEN Published: 08:30, 5 August 2026 | Updated: 08:36, 5 August 2026 A suspected people smuggler was in custody today accused of placing a record 173 migrants onto a single 'mega-dinghy' that burst into flames in the English Channel. The Egyptian man – who has not been identified by name – is said to have made £173,000 from the crossing, equivalent to £1,000 per head.  It followed prosecutors in Boulogne opening an investigation into 'aiding the illegal entry and stay of foreigners' – a crime punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine equivalent to £26,000. The 40ft inflatable dinghy was designed for a maximum 25 passengers but had 173 men, women and children on board when it disintegrated shortly before 6am yesterday. 'The man was arrested last night and will be questioned at length by judicial police and prosecutors,' said a source close to the case. Investigators also revealed that none of those rescued wanted to remain in France. One said: 'There were fifty women and children on the boat, and they all declined emergency accommodation. All want to get to Britain as quickly as possible.' More than 2,000 migrants have arrived on UK shores in small-boat crossings since Andy Burnham became Prime Minister. Migrants disembark from a French rescue ship following their rescue at sea after their boat caught fire  The British rescue ship BSC Contender cruises away after participating in the rescue operation  Your browser does not support iframes. Your browser does not support iframes. Mr Burnham is now heading on a family holiday despite only being in office for two weeks – prompting Reform UK to claim he is 'bunking off'. The boat had set off late on Monday night from the Normandy beach of Veules-les-Roses, a small village close to Dieppe. It is at least 100 miles from the beaches around Boulogne and Calais, where most migrants depart for England, suggesting a change in tactics by the smugglers. There were so many people on board that some of the migrants asked to get off within two hours. 'Five people had initially asked to be rescued, because the boat was in such a bad way,' said the prefecture spokesman.  'The rest told rescuers they wanted to continue, and this was permitted. Then, later in the morning, the engine caught fire.' It was then that everybody jumped into the water, and the boat capsized, said the spokesman. It is thought that a fuel leak from the outboard motor caused the blaze, causing mass panic on board. Some 54 of those on board were picked up by the UK Border Force command vessel Contender. In turn, the French boats Argonaute and Minck rescued 30 and 73 respectively, before everybody was taken back to Boulogne-sur-Mer. All were immediately inspected medically on arrival, and 'some had minor burns', said another investigating source. Some of the rescued migrants wore gold thermal jackets to warm them up after ending up in the sea  Your browser does not support iframes. Your browser does not support iframes. The stricken vessel was being tracked by British and French rescue boats when it caught fire, according to France's Maritime Prefecture.  French officials have a controversial policy of not intercepting small boats at sea because they claim it could risk the lives of those onboard, though they can carry out rescues.  At the end of last month, 165 migrants reached the UK in a single boat, the Home Office confirmed. The number broke the previous record from July, when 128 crossed the Channel from France in one vessel. A Home Office spokesman said the crossing served as a 'stark reminder that criminal gangs have no regard for the safety of those they claim to help. The reality is clear and lives are being lost in the Channel.' At least 15 UK-bound migrants have died in the Channel this year, either by drowning or suffocating in a small boat because of overcrowding. The worst tragedy of this kind came in November 2021, when 27 migrants died after a dinghy sank while heading to the UK – the highest recorded number of deaths from a single incident. Yesterday's incident came a day after Reform proposed using the Royal Navy to return migrants to France or Belgium under a plan called Operation Fortress. In response to the attempted crossing, Nigel Farage said: 'We must put a stop to this. Our plan will save lives.' Migrants at the Port de Commerce in Boulogne-sur-Mer, northern France, after the rescue mission Reform UK chairman Lee Anderson, speaking to the Daily Mail in northern France, said: 'It is another heartbreaking incident and it's needless' A total of 165 migrants crossed the Channel to the UK in a single mega-dinghy on July 23 - the highest on record  A UK Government spokesman said: 'This incident underlines the terrible dangers of small-boat crossings. We continue to work relentlessly with the French and our partners overseas to prevent these perilous journeys.' Justice Secretary Alex Norris said the incident showed 'the blind indifference that human traffickers have for life on those boats' and 'the dangerous nature of those crossings'. The Daily Mail was at the scene yesterday as a British vessel – BSC Contender – brought migrant survivors of the blaze back to France. Reform UK chairman Lee Anderson, speaking to the Daily Mail in northern France, said: 'It is another heartbreaking incident and it's needless.' Asked about the British vessel's role in the rescue, Mr Anderson said it disproves 'the excuse the British politicians use that we can't bring people back to France. Of course we can.' Among the rescued migrants was a woman who cradled a baby with relief, while others bore haunted stares as they were driven away in a coach.