A DRIVER says he will appeal against a £2,000 fine imposed after he caught two illegal immigrants hiding in the back of his coach.

Lawrence Bourne, co-owner of Wickford-based L and R Transport Services, was driving day trip customers back from a Calais hypermarket when he was targeted by the desperate men.

He was taking 40 passengers back to the French port when he was stopped by a large group of people crossing the road.

While he was distracted, two stowaways forced the lock on the storage area under the coach and hid inside.

Mr Bourne, 64, from Basildon, said: “There was a massive group at the zebra crossing and it took them ages to get across, which I did think was strange.

“When we arrived at the port ten miles on, I got out and went to check around the back of the coach.

“I could see straight away the lock had been broken off, and when I looked inside, I saw the two men straight away. It was me who dragged them out.”

Mr Bourne and his passengers were held for three and a half hours by the UK Border Agency before they were allowed home.

They were held because although still in France, once drivers pass a certain point at the port, they are legally considered to be on British soil.

This meant Mr Bourne had, technically, brought the men into the UK and breached immigration laws.

The incident was in October 2014, but Mr Bourne only found out about the fine when he got a letter last week.

It landed on his doormat, just as cross-Channel immigration hit the headlines again, thanks to a French ferry strike which brought lorries to a standstill as desperate people clung to vehicles, trying to get to the UK.

Mr Bourne has 28 days to appeal against the fine and said he would definitely be doing so.

He added: “By the time we got to April and May, we just assumed the Border Agency wasn’t going to pursue it because it had been so long.

“On the day it happened, we had taken steps to secure the coach and we checked it properly.

“But these people broke in.

We feel it’s very unfair to fine us.

“If we lose the appeal, we're going to have the pay the Border Agency’s legal costs as well, but it’s a chance we have to take.”

Once the Border Agency receives an appeal, it has 70 days to rule on it – after which the case can be taken to court.

‘It’s so bad we do very few port trips’

THE problems posed by desperate migrants at the Channel ports have since forced Lawrence Bourne’s company to cut back on trips through France.

L and R Transport Services, based in Southend Road Wickford continues to run weekly day trips to Calais, but has turned down other offers of work.

Only last Friday, one of the firm’s drivers caught two stowaways trying to hide under a coach as he dropped off a group of schoolchildren.

Mr Bourne said: “We’ve always done a day trip to Calais and we have a lot of loyal customers who go on it quite regularly, so we don't want to let them down.

“But we’ve stopped all other European journeys. It’s just too much pressure. Me and my business partner are the only drivers who will take the day trips from now on, because you have to be so careful.

“A lot of people think the press is sensationalising the problems in Calais, but that’s exactly what it’s like.

“I’ve even had bricks thrown at my coach. It’s getting quite nasty out there now.”