23/01/2012 Inside Out North West

Hello. For tonight's programme, we are at sports city in Manchester

where the we learn what it takes to become an Olympic champion.

Tonight, back on British soil, the man who spent 8 years in the

Bangkok Hilton. I think he has done it long enough. He has done 8 years.

The search for illegal immigrants, we follow the north-west Border

Agency as they carry out raids across the region. When we arrived,

we found one person and we suspect they are illegal.

We reveal the power behind our Olympic hopefuls. The parent is

trusting you to look after their children and develop them

physically and mentally into a per have way beyond gymnastics. -- into

We have got an exclusive on Inside Out tonight. A young man from

buried he was sentenced to life in a Thai jail is back in Britain.

Michael Connell, 19 when he was caught smuggling drugs, has already

served a 8 years at the Bang Kwang Prison. Now his father speaking

exclusively to us has said that Michael has had enough and should

be freed. It is the world's most notorious

For the past 8 years, Bang Kwang Prison, better known as the Bangkok

Hilton, has been home to Michael Connell. There are 24 in the room

which is really hard. Everyone is all over the floor. I was surprised

that he did not get more illnesses. He just had one bout of pneumonia.

It could have killed him, but it did not.

Michael, who has learning difficulties, was arrested when he

arrived at Bangkok airport in November 2003. 3,400 Ecstasy

tablets were found hidden in tubs of cream in his luggage. Speaking

in a BBC documentary the following year, he describes what happened.

went to collect my back and for some reason, it was already off the

rails because someone had picked it up, walked through customs. Then

someone asked if they could search my back and brought it to the X-ray

machine, opened it, put their hand and and pulled them out. When I got

arrested, they had a big sign up in the customs office which scared me

a lot. I just sat there looking at it and just praying that I did not

get the death penalty. To my family, I love you all. Don't

worry about me, be more worried about yourself. Back home, his

father Derek had no idea he had even travelled to Thailand. I was

working as a taxi driver and became on the radio that a local man,

Michael Connell, has been arrested in Thailand. That was the first I

had heard of it. We did not get any phone calls from the government to

advisers or anything like that. Not a nice way to hear of what your son

has been up to. When they found a neat, I knew what was going to

happen to me. Anywhere in the world if you get caught importing drugs,

you go to prison, so I knew I would be put in prison as soon as they

found them. Shortly after his arrest, Inside

Out a company that Derek to see Michael and find out what happened.

It was his first trip to the Far East. I get stressed out going into

town, so I'm stressed now. It was an even bigger shock when we

visited Michael in prison. Very noisy. Heat is sat in a long

corridor with glass walls. You realise that your son is coming

when you hear the clanking of the change -- the trains. Each step,

the canker of the chains is horrible. Michael actually climbed

up and showed us his legs. They are not little, they are big, heavy

duty. They are very heavy. It is not a pretty sight by any stretch

of the imagination. During the visit Michael refused to

tell Derek who else was involved, but he confessed he knew he had the

drugs and was smuggling them into diet -- into Thailand to pay off

debts. He borrowed �350 off me and his mother. I had been led to

believe it was to pay council tax and rent. He told me today but that

is what he owed some body. He paid that many of because he said he

doesn't like being in debt. I said, why did you do this then? He said,

It looks like he has done it to repay his debts to me and his

mother. Obviously, it is stupid because we would have written the

debts of gladly. Inside Out obtained Michael's

education records which back-up Derek's claim -- claims that

Michael has learning difficulties and is easily led. We asked Michael

how much he was getting and he said that he did not know. He said that

they would give him some money, which shows his gullibility of. To

risk your freedom and your life for somebody that has not confirmed the

amount, they said it you take them over and once we have got them, we

will sort you out, Michael. They had not even come up with a figure.

He is not a bad lad. He is a fall, he is definitely a fall, but he is

not a criminal. Because Michael pleaded guilty, he avoided the

death sentence and was given 99 years, reduced on appeal to 30

years. Financial restraints mean Derek has only visited him three

times, the last was for Michael's 21st birthday six years ago.

coped a lot better than I thought he would. He never once complained

ever, never blamed anyone else but himself. He said he had done

something stupid, wished he had not done it, but he had. He had to deal

with it. I am sleeping next to a guy who has

not washed his bed for two months. I have told them to do with, but he

does not do it. I'm sure he will get mice in his bed. Michael also

found himself as somewhat of a tourist attraction. A visit to the

Bangkok Hilton is part of the backpacker itinerary. Michael

settled into the routine at present -- prison life and got a job in a

hospital. Early on, he could not speak to them very well, but he has

developed over the years. He used to sit up all night with a

terminally ill prisoners dying of Dr Manhop eventually gave him a job

in the pharmacy. Michael is in prison for smuggling drugs into

Thailand and he is working mean in a pharmacy in the Bangkok Hilton! I

still find that amusing. They must have trusted him to give him that

job in the first place. Following amnesties from the King of Thailand

and a reduction for good behaviour, Michael's sentence was reduced to

20 years. He could have asked to transfer to a British prison four

years ago, but chose to return to Thailand in the hope of getting a

king's pardon. Last year, he had had enough of the can Thailand and

he was flown back to the UK and put in a category B prison just before

Christmas. Due to a change in the law, he now has to serve half of

the rest of his sentence rather than half of his original sentence

before he is eligible for parole. Now, he faces even longer in prison.

He is back in England, he has done 8 years, his sentences 20 years and

he has 12 years to do. Prior to his arrest, you could apply for parole

once he had served half of your sentence. Michael could have

applied for parole after he had served 10 years, but in 2008 they

changed the law so that he had to serve half of the remainder of his

sentence in prison before he could apply. Where he hoped to apply for

parole in two years, he cannot apply for six years now.

addition, if Michael had not appealed against his original

sentence and had come back to the UK, the British government would

now have to set a tariff for the rest of his sentence and Derek

believes he would be freed immediately. He is writing to

people who he thinks may be able to help Michael's course. I am not

beat smartest bloke so if anyone can give me any advice, it would be

gratefully accepted. Hopefully they can try and get his sentence

reduced, or get him paroled in a couple of years. Having Michael

back home is the first step towards regaining his son's freedom. He

thinks he has suffered enough. Michael committed a crime, he

admitted he committed a crime, he has never denied it and has always

put his hands up. He said he was a stupid and wishes he had never done

it. He has done 8 years in one of the worst prisons in the world. I

think the Americans say it is the equivalent of two years in one of

their presence. Michael has done long enough, I think, and I will do

whatever I can to get his sentence reduced, or even squashed if I can.

I want to get him out. Coming up: Meet the unsung heroes

helping our Olympians prepare for the Games. We have our tickets and

we will be there cheering them on. The UK Border Agency has been under

investigation last week following claims its staff were told to relax

identity checks on non- EU nationals. The head of the

organisation resigned over the controversy. Here, board agency

offices are targeting immigration crime by raiding restaurants and

takeaways. 50 Border Agency officials and

police officers made a cash and carry warehouse outside Liverpool

city centre. They are looking for suspected Eagle employees. It takes

the Border Agency seconds to seal the area and they begin the process

of working out who is the food. They suspect around 20 people have

been working hit illegally so one of the first tasks to contain the

people here behind me, interview them and assess the situation. It

is an operation they have been planning since July. It is all

based on intelligence. Staff who are entitled to work in the UK are

moved to another part of the building. If the Border Agency find

any illegal workers, the company faces a fine of �10,000.

The Border Agency suspect there are 20 or more people working here

illegally. Is this news to you? Hopefully they will not even find

one person here. Are you confident you have done the correct checks?

When we hire someone, we get the passports from them and we look at

the passports, what kind of Beazer's they have. We sent out to

head office to verify it. -- these were. Once head office says OK,

then we hire them. How do you feel about this raid on your store?

need to do their job. They are here to find someone. If they find

someone, then that is good because they should catch these people. But

as far as I know, there will not be any.

The manager says he thinks he has done adequate checks. Is that

something you encountered regularly? Yes, and I do have a

colleague who is going through the employee at records. -- employee

records. If any are found to be working illegally, a fine will be

issued against the manager. So long as he done -- has done the right

checks, they have permission to work with the UK companies, he can

appeal any finance is issued today. The Border Agency intelligence

information does not stand up to scrutiny. Two people are arrested,

one of them a customer. Both have been placed on immigration bail.

The company Bestway later complained the raid had been heavy

handed. Raids like this are organised by

this man who leads the newly established criminal and financial

investigations team. From a secret location on the outskirts of

Manchester, these officers gather evidence against crime gangs of.

The team investigate organised criminal networks who are actively

involved in immigration crime. We look to disrupt and dismantle these

groups. The team that sift through intelligence and try to unravel the

evidence. They work with other department -- departments like

council services and revenues and customs. They liken it to peeling

back the layers of an onion to find out what is going on. A minor

offence can lead to the destruction of a much bigger organised crime.

This man, Chi Lain Chen, is a Chinese national who was living in

the UK illegally. At the same time, he was running a successful

business empire worth an estimated �2 million. His work centred on

three Chinese restaurants across the Lake District, but he was

One of the restaurants is trading legitimately, but when Mr Chen was

in charge, a number of people were working illegally. Here at this

restaurant, which used to be known as the Royal Tea Garden,

investigators discovered two bedrooms which had been set aside

for workers to living. Raids also took place at the Rice Bowl in

Kendal, at this one in Keswick, officers and a bedroom divided down

the middle by a line of wardrobes and families on either side. This

undercover officer, whose identity we have agreed to protect, is the

man who brought Chen to justice and a prison sentence of two years.

Because of his own status as a failed asylum-seeker, he had no

entitlement to work in the UK. Engaged in all these businesses,

operating restaurants. We know from other cases that we have had

incidences of restaurant owners being able to call upon almost a

sort of illegal pool of migrants that might be operating in London,

there would be an informal network to: that resource. Despite China's

economic growth, poverty is still persistent. Especially in rural

areas. Those desperate enough to enter the UK illegally often

contact smuggling gangs run by Chinese criminals known as

Snakeheads. Quite a long and arduous route for these people to

get here added normally involves long periods of walking, long

periods of transit by road and eventually cutting across Europe,

concealed in lorries, which is quite dangerous. This woman was

smuggled into Manchester by Snakeheads and had been working

here illegally for six years. She agreed to tell us her story through

an interpreter. We have obscured her identity. TRANSLATION: In China,

it is very difficult. My family do not have a lot of money. I have

heard that people go to another country to make money so that is

where I came to the UK. Life in China is very difficult for me.

Salaries are less than �100 per month. If I come to the UK, at

least I can work and get some money, and life could get better.

borrowed �20,000 from friends to pay the Snakeheads, then began a

one-way journey, flying around Europe. TRANSLATION:, I had to pay

them all the money at once. Otherwise they would lock me in a

room. This is an illegal working operation, restaurants all under

the same ownership. Tonight, the Border Agency will be carrying at

five raids on site in Greater Manchester. We will look to see

that premises. Officers have found more than 50 illegal workers

employed in one particular restaurant in Rusholme, Manchester.

Inside, the 35 staff have been stopped from working and wit to be

interviewed by officers. Even for the ones who have arrived to be

employed in the UK, it is a nerve- racking and intimidating time.

Documents will be checked against Home Office records and workers can

be fingerprinted if necessary. they arrived at the property, we

find one person hiding in the cupboards are we suspect that

person may be illegal, we're doing checks. One other guy who gave a

false name, we have fingerprinted him. That deception suggests he

could be illegal. Foreign players, this is just the start of a process.

The border agencies can target money any company has made,

employing illegal immigrants. For Chi Chen, jail is only the

beginning. He benefited to �2.2 million, whatever remains of that

benefit will -- we will be seeking to take everything off him.

years ago, the eyes of the sporting world were on the Commonwealth

Games here in Manchester. This year, the Spotlight is on the Olympics,

and athletes from all over the North West are training hard to

make it to the Games. Without the help of those behind the scenes,

none of them would have a chance of making the greatest show on earth.

We have been speaking to parents, coaches and scientists who are

helping to create the region's That is the brilliance when from

James Goddard. Beth Tweddle has shown us what she is capable of.

talent and determination, they stand on the brink of Olympic

success. -- brute talent. The those cyclists, gymnasts and swimmers,

they would not be in the position they are without people behind the

scenes. We will meet some of them to find out how champions or

All athletes are inspired first of all at home, so I have come to be a

mother who knows a thing or two about inspiring her children. All

three of them play sport for their country. Sue is blind, her husband

Anthony is partially sighted. Both enjoyed successful sporting careers.

Their three children, Mark, Roy and Llodra are also blind, with

condition called retinopathy. But Sue is determined that would never

be a barrier. We have always encouraged them to take every

advantage of whatever comes along, don't let anyone tell you, you

can't do that, because you can't see. Mark has played football and

cricket for England. His other boy has done the same. Dr Lord de la

Warr has a medal within -- winning para-cyclist. -- daughter Lora.

Quite a trophy cabinet. I will show you. On the top, they are mine.

Underneath, the next shelf, is some of mind and some of Anthony's. On

the bottom shelf, they are all white's and Lora APPLAUSE.

. That means you have the most. Overall, Roy and Lora have many

more than we do! They have finally overtaken you. They have always

supported us, and taken us two events and cheered us on and

encourage us to train. Both Lora in cycling and Roy in football have a

good chance of competing at the Paralympics. They cannot be many

families in this country who could have two children at the Games this

summer. It will be really exciting, I will have to make -- lead my

nails grow long so I have something to bite! It will be very nerve-

racking. But very exciting. We have got our tickets, so we will be

there, cheering them on. Extra loud! We are going with little bits

of circuits. After the parent, the next most important person is the

coach. Keep your legs together. a sport like gymnastics, where boys

and girls start at the age of five or six, that role is even more

important. They can be like a second payment -- parent, or an

older sister. There still has to be that line, where they know that

what I say go. -- goes. You have to be there, whether its problems in

school, boyfriend problems, whatever. You are just there and if

you know they are down, you have to take time to see why they are down.

If they are down in normal life, the training will suffer. Amanda

started coaching 20 years ago when the club have little track record

of success. Now it is likely to supply the bulk of the women's

Olympic team. It is like a little factory, Judith what had the babies,

Tina would have the middle section and I would have the older ones. It

worked from there, we just worked as a team together, but the kids to

a high-level, pushed them further. She has helped the likes of Beth

Tweddle to world titles, drawing on her own experiences in Olympic

gymnastics. I know what fears, or what strengths I had as a gymnast.

Even if it was just wanting support, lots of support, or physical or

mental, I would either withdraw from gymnasts I have got to make

them stronger, to compete better than I ever did. She knows what it

takes to be at the top. She worked with generations before us. She

took me through to European and world medal level. We all trust or

complete the without gymnastics. -- trust her completely. The parent is

interesting you for four hours on one session, 20 hours a week, they

are due to literally look after their child and hopefully, develop

them but just physically but mentally into a good path way

beyond gymnastics. Some of the region pop - my son of the region's

top medal hopes will be in the pool and the swimmers will benefit from

a host of staff dedicated to every aspect of their well-being, as well

as specialist scientists whose job it is to find tiny elements of

performance which could in the end proved the difference between

silver and gold. All the way. And hold. The scientists like Ben, that

means picking up tiny snippets of his information through Platt and

lung tests. -- blood and lung test. And using underwater cameras. Have

you ever fallen in? Not yet. will happen one day. I fell in on

purpose once. Some days I might be filming constantly for two hours.

Some, it might be two minutes. Some sessions, it might be in debt

feedback with coaches. Analysing, looking at angles. Benn has been

working but eight of them with West's best swimmers for two years.

Part of his job is to make comparisons between them and the

world's best. It is a challenge to video everyone. British women, in

terms of what we see it competition, it is great. -- British swimming.

No one is in this game for anything other than personal motivation.

They are motivated bunch of people and that energy flows, even on a

bad day. Whether they are a coat, parent or member of the backroom

staff, we will be sure to deliver every possible emotion as they

build up to the greatest sporting event of all their lives.

That's all from me, but if you missed any of tonight's programme,