Munef Al Jashaami (35), with an address listed at Portland in Maine in the United States, was given a five months jail term at Antrim Magistrates' Court, sitting in Ballymena, on Tuesday. He pleaded guilty to assisting unlawful immigration to the United Kingdom on June 1 this year. The defendant appeared at court via video link from Maghaberry Prison.
Advertisement Advertisement Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to NorthernIrelandWorld, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you. A defence barrister said the defendant had "a mid-range level of English" and he was assisted at court by an Arabic language interpreter. A prosecutor said immigration officers at Belfast International Airport had spoken to the defendant, an American citizen, who was along with a woman who was a suspected illegal immigrant.
The prosecutor said the defendant was attempting to facilitate the illegal migrant to get to Great Britain, having entered unlawfully via the Republic of Ireland. The prosecutor said it was believed the defendant was attempting to facilitate the illegal migrant into the the UK by "providing an illegal service including the procurement of false documents and unlawful travel across multiple EU (European Union) borders charging a fee of 4,500 dollars to illegally enter the UK via Ireland". Advertisement Advertisement The defence lawyer said the defendant, who has a wife and four children in Portland, works in "security".
The barrister said the defendant .