A 40-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of smuggling people from the Netherlands to Britain using his sailing yacht, Dutch border police said on Wednesday. He is also suspected of money laundering.

His yacht has been seized in the port of IJmuiden as part of the investigation, which started after an incident in August at a lock in Stellendam, in Zuid-Holland, involving the same vessel.

The yacht had been waiting at the lock but failed to respond to repeated radio calls. After an hour, it requested passage, but the lock operator noticed the skipper was struggling to control the boat and closed the lock as a precaution.

Border police later found three people on board with Turkish and Albanian nationality, including one carrying a false Italian identity card. They also discovered including 12 life-jackets, British and Belgian flags and navigation equipment.

The suspect was detained in the Zaanstreek region on Tuesday. During a search of his home, officers seized several mobile phones, tablets, cash, life-jackets, navigation gear, drugs and weapons.

Last month prosecutors demanded a 2.5-year prison sentence for two Dutch men who were caught at the end of 2023 with 10 people hidden in the cabin of their yacht and almost no safety equipment on board.