FIVE stowaways from Africa were intercepted in France on a lorry bound for Newton Abbot.

The would-be illegal immigrants from Eritrea were caught trying to sneak into the UK by immigration officials in Calais.

Three women and two men were found by a check team using a sniffer dog who picked up the scent of the hideaways.

The discovery was made by a sniffer dog in the back of a Polish-registered vehicle passing through the French ferry port in the early hours of last Wednesday.

All five stowaways were detained by French police for questioning before possible deportation back to their home country.

They had been hiding in a consignment of mixed goods destined for a depot in the Newton Abbot area, said a spokesman for the UK Border Agency yesterday.

The spokesman said most stowaways found in such circumstances tried to escape from their vehicles at the earliest opportunity, usually at motorway services.

He did not know if the Eritreans had any intention to stay in the vehicle until it reached its final destination in South Devon.

"We simply don't know," he said, adding that the last port of call of the lorry in Newton Abbot was not known to the agency.

But he did reveal that the lorry driver and the Polish haulage company involved would be fined if they were unable to prove they took the necessary precautions to prevent their vehicle being entered by stowaways.

"Our officers were told of the dog's discovery and they entered the vehicle and found the five hiding among the load of mixed goods.

"The stowaways were handed over to French Border Police and the vehicle was allowed to continue to the address in Newton Abbot," he said.

He added: "Both the Polish driver and the haulage company will be fined if they are unable to prove they took the correct steps to secure the vehicle.

Carole Upshall, the UK Border Agency's head of European Operations, said: "This is why we base many of our officers in France and Belgium — to prevent illegal immigrants crossing the Channel to the UK.

"As well as using sniffer dogs our staff also have heartbeat detectors, scanners and carbon dioxide probes to detect people who are hiding on board lorries."

UK Border Agency officers use high-tech search equipment to combat immigration crime and detect banned and restricted goods that smugglers attempt to bring into the country.

Throughout 2009 more than 29,000 illegal attempts to cross the Channel were prevented.