An observant lorry driver stuck in a tailback on the M6 became suspicious when he spotted a hand dangling from the side of the lorry in front.
As he crawled past police officers dealing with the bump, he told them about his bizarre sighting.
When the unwitting lorry driver, who had travelled from the Channel Tunnel, pulled into Knutsford Services, the police found five men and three youngsters huddled in the back.
They were housed in police cells in Northwich and Wilmslow until immigration and social services staff arrived.
A Home Office spokesman said the adults were now in county council care until their claim for asylum - believed to be for political reasons - could be heard.
The boys, all aged about 14, are staying with families in London.
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