GETTY Truckers are arming themselves with tasers for self defence against migrants

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Besieged lorry drivers are going to increasingly desperate lengths to defend themselves as a result of the increasingly brutal methods used by migrants desperate to smuggle themselves into the UK. Many are risking arrest and prosecution in Britain by buying stun guns disguised as torches, which are legal in France but outlawed over here.

But they say they have been forced to act because migrants are now arming themselves with knives and hammers before heading out onto the motorway and trying to force their way into lorries. Terrified truckers say it is only a matter of time before a tragic death occurs, with the confrontations between drivers and migrants becoming increasingly tense.

REUTERS More than 6,000 migrants now live at the Jungle II camp

REUTERS Many migrants are becoming increasingly desperate to reach Britain

There is even a petrol station just outside Calais selling tasers and CS gas, such is the demand from lorry drivers for weapons with which to defend themselves. One trucker said: “It’s risky ­because if you get caught with these weapons in Britain you are committing a criminal offence. "But we need to be able to protect ourselves. The migrants are now arming ­themselves with knives and hammers and all sorts and they’re getting more and more ­aggressive. “I think something bad will happen soon where either a migrant will kill a truck driver or it’ll happen the other way round.”

EPA Truckers say many migrants are becoming increasingly violent

EPA Drivers claim migrants are arming themselves with knives and hammers

What else can we do? It's mayhem British trucker

The owner of a Total garage just outside the lawless port town told the Sunday People that £9 canisters of CS gas, which is usually used by the police in riot control, are a hugely popular item with British lorry drivers. The revelations come after it emerged that the booming migrant population of Calais has now topped a staggering 6,000. Most live in the notorious Jungle II camp next to the port during the day and make repeated efforts to smuggle themselves on board lorries and break into the Channel Tunnel at night. One exasperated lorry driver said: “CS gas is nasty stuff so I understand it’s illegal in Britain, but what else can we do? It’s our livelihood.”

Speaking about tasers, often ­disguised as torches, he added: “I don’t have one but I’ve seen them and heard about drivers buying them. “Drivers are carrying all sorts to protect ­themselves now, hammers, big steel bars, pointed screwdrivers – it’s gone mad. “I just lock my doors and keep my windows up at all times and try never to stop. “You get constant hassle going through Calais now because refugees are getting more and more desperate and are trying to get in anywhere and everywhere. It’s mayhem.”

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