Two men have been cleared of people smuggling today (March 31) after the prosecution offered no evidence as the trial entered its third week.

A West Devon man had admitted making a number of voyages to smuggle illegal migrants into the UK but said he was acting under duress.

Tony Williams and Monet Roberts had gone on trial charged with conspiring to assist in the unlawful immigration into the UK.

Williams had denied one charge in connection with an incident involving a boat dropping off seventeen migrants at Slapton Sands on the south Devon coast on June 15 2022.

Plymouth Crown Court that Williams, now 60, also faced a second charge with Roberts of conspiracy to assist in people smuggling in July 2023 in Mothecombe on the south Devon coast.

But the Crown said there had been a careful review and they had decided to offer no evidence against both defendants.

Judge Matthew Turner recorded not guilty verdicts and both men were free to leave the court.

At the start of the case, prosecutor Frederick Hookway told the jury that Williams admitted to investigators that he chartered a boat to south Devon to deliver migrants into the UK and expected to be paid for it.

He said Roberts was on the second boat seen in Mothecombe but claimed he simply did not know what was going on and was somehow mis-sold what was going on.

Mr Hookway said that a local boatman spotted a vessel 'looking out of place' in Pilchard's Cove before it moved to the beach at Slapton Sands one morning in June 2022.

The court heard Williams piloted the boat and he said 17 people were on board in total and some of them carried suitcases as they came ashore.

Mr Hookway said:"The witness formed the view they were likely to be illegal immigrants into the UK and he reported what he had seen to the coastguard."

A mother and son who were camping nearby saw two men on the beach lead the people from the boat into two people carrier taxis - and the drivers later said they were paid £500 each by an East European man to drive the fares to Brent Cross in north London.

Mr Hookway said Williams was arrested in December 2022 and admitted making several similar trips and for each successful operation with 15 illegal migrants he would be paid £3,000 per migrant, or around £50,000 a trip.

He said he had made three successful trips making him around £150,000, the jury had been told.

Williams, of Lydford in West Devon claimed he was compelled to act as he did out of fear but the prosecution had rejected this and alleged he was 'enticed and encouraged by the rewards'.

Roberts, from London, was found on the boat at Mothecombe in July 2023 but claimed he had been hoodwinked into the enterprise. Williams, who was on bail for the first alleged incident in June 2022, was also on board.

Mr Hookway said in July 2023 a number of men of East European appearance arrived in a car park at Mothecombe in south Devon and climbed out of several cars.

A single-masted sailing boat was just off shore by the beach and some rocks and a witness saw a group of men walk up the beach from the yacht and Williams and Roberts were allegedly on board.