Just before 9am this morning (Wed) a distressed call was received from a man travelling in the back of a refrigerated lorry on the M6 northbound. He was requesting urgent assistance for himself and his companions.
As a result of the information received officers from the Central Motorway Police Group (CMPG) co-ordinated a regional response, which included officers from Staffordshire Police, West Midlands Police and Highways Agency colleagues. CMPG officers were able to successfully stop the lorry between Hilton services and J10a.
In order to do this safely the motorway was closed in both directions for a short period of time.
The 12 individuals, located within the vehicle, are now being seen by colleagues from the ambulance service should they require medical attention, and where appropriate will be taken into custody.
We will now be working with our colleagues in immigration and border control to establish the exact circumstances of how these individuals came to be in the back of the lorry.