[84] Diane Abbott, Shadow Home Secretary, said greater international co-operation was needed to prevent similar events happening again. The two main offenders, Ronan Hughes and Gheorghe Nica, were given 20 years (for 39 counts of manslaughter and conspiring to bring people into the country unlawfully) and 27 years (for manslaughter and people-smuggling), respectively. He accepted Hughes was "not at the very top of the conspiracy" but said his role was "pivotal in that he ran a haulage business and supplied the trailers and drivers used to transport the migrants". [8] Belgian officials said the people were trapped in the trailer for at least 10 hours. Detectives believe the vehicle was travelling from Bulgaria and entered the UK three days ago via Holyhead in north Wales, one of the main port for ferries from Ireland. "And finding out at the very last minute, and realising as you die, that the VIP service was a terrible lie, is exactly what you see from these organised crime groups. They had each paid about 13,000 to be smuggled into the UK and had desperately tried to raise the alarm as they suffocated inside the pitch-black refrigerated unit, which had been switched off. [4] Following the incident, the Chief Executive of the charity group Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants said that the British government needs to open safe routes and make quick decisions regarding asylum seekers to prevent such attempts, sentiments echoed by the Refugee and Migrant Rights Director of Amnesty International UK. On 11 October, about 15 migrants made the journey across the channel, though in a different trailer to the one in which the 39 died. Officer Maxime Saison was on duty in France that night and told how the migrants, speaking in English, confirmed they were Vietnamese and had no documentation. [34] British police had also searched two properties in Northern Ireland. "It's hard to say whether that would change the outcome but we have changed nationally the way that we deal with organised immigration crimes.". [4], The investigation is being led by Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Stoten, a Senior Investigating Officer within the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate. Post-mortem examinations found they died of overheating and a lack of oxygen. A screengrab of Maurice Robinson leaving Purfleet port. Lorry driver Christopher Kennedy, 24, of County Armagh, and van driver Valentin Calota, 38, of Birmingham, were also convicted of being part of the people-smuggling plot. Exactly two years ago, Essex was dealt one of the worst tragedies it's ever seen. "I saw some legs come out. In the days after the news broke, Waterglade Industrial Estate was swarmed by police, forensics and press. Robinson had driven from Holyhead, a major Irish Sea port in north-west Wales, to collect the trailer. Sense of injustice lingers after Seoul Halloween crush, Chess gets a risqu makeover. A similar run was stopped at the mouth of the Eurotunnel at Coquelles in France on 14 October, when 20 Vietnamese migrants were discovered. The twice-daily update will deliver the top news and features to your inbox every morning and evening. The driver of the trailer spoke only to hurry them along, Witness X told the court. He had seen a friend's Facebook post showing that they had made it to London. He was later arrested in Germany. [19][20], Initially the police said the deceased were all Chinese nationals and the Chinese embassy in London sent officials to assist with identification. [75] On 8 April 2021, his extradition was approved. A father of one of the deceased said he was given two options: having the ashes returned for 41,100,000 Vietnam dong (1,470) or receiving the body for 66,240,000 Vietnam dong (2,209). [7][10][11], The Zeebrugge port chairman said it was "highly unlikely" the migrants entered the trailer there, and that breaking the seal, loading 39 people and resealing the trailer without being noticed would be "virtually impossible". "A load of immigrants just got out of a lorry, they just got into Mercedes and all that," Ms Andrews told the 999 operator. The trial examined three smuggling attempts by the gang - two that were successful on 11 and 18 October, and the final trip on 23 October. He was immediately released having already served his sentence in custody. He was returned to the UK where he was charged with 39 counts of manslaughter and conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration. [56] Bail was refused on 30 April. He said the victims died in an "unimaginable way, because of the utter greed of these criminals". Four men have been jailed for the manslaughter of 39 Vietnamese migrants found dead in a lorry trailer in Essex. On Monday . [12], On 23 October 2019, shortly after 01:40 BST, staff of the East of England Ambulance Service responding to a 999 call made by the driver, Maurice Robinson, who found 39 bodies in a refrigerated articulated lorry. Image: Police and forensics at the crime scene in Grays, Essex, in October 2019 The victims died from suffocation and hyperthermia in the confined space of the truck, which arrived on a ferry from . ", Video evidence showed how the trainer containing 39 Vietnamese migrants made its way to the UK. [11][12], On 2 November, police clarified they were all Vietnamese. "I don't know what happened but something must have changed in their plan, or he was scammed," he said. Northern Irish lorry driver, Christopher Kennedy, 24, and Valentin Calota, 38, a pickup driver from Romania, were both convicted of conspiring to smuggle people into the country unlawfully. Christopher Kennedy, 24, from County Armagh, was jailed for seven years; Valentin Calota, 38, of Birmingham, for four-and-a-half years; and Alexandru-Ovidiu Hanga, 28, of Hobart Road, Tilbury, Essex, was given a three-year sentence. [78] Prosecutors are considering charges against a further three people. RM GA0448 - A police officer at the scene of a shooting at Rayleigh railway station in Essex, after a member of the public was shot armed robbers today. A port worker who drove the trailer off the ship later reported noticing a pungent smell that was "similar to waste". Channel 4 defended its decision as meeting its public service obligations, arguing that revelation of the ease with which people could be smuggled into Britain had become a "matter of urgent public interest". A restaurant worker in the industrial estate, who did not want to be named, said: "There's a lot of police and forensics. He was described as an organiser for the people-trafficking organisation, arranging accommodation and transit for money. Christopher Kennedy, 24, another lorry driver from Northern Ireland who was involved in earlier people-smuggling runs bringing Vietnamese migrants from Northern Ireland, was sentenced to seven years. "He told me that he would only go on a 'VIP package', in a private car," she said. Our enquiries are ongoing to establish what has happened. It is understood Phong is currently subject of further police inquiries but his full identity has not been revealed. The father of Nguyen Huy Tung, one of two 15-year-olds in the container, later learned of his son's death via social media. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk, Lorry container 'became a tomb' for 39 victims, Essex lorry deaths driver admits manslaughter. Investigations revealed that they suffocated to death in 38 degrees in the refrigerated container, where all the oxygen was sucked out. [71][72] Alexandru-Ovidiu Hanga, of Tilbury, and Gazmir Nuzi, of Tottenham, also pleaded guilty to assisting unlawful immigration in June and September 2020 respectively. The 39 people who died in the back of a trailer as it crossed the North Sea between Zeebrugge and the UK, [Left to right] Eamonn Harrison, Ronan Hughes, Gheorghe Nica and Maurice Robinson were all jailed for manslaughter, [Left to right] Valentin Calota, Alexandru-Ovidiu Hanga and Christopher Kennedy were also sentenced on Friday, The bodies of 39 Vietnamese nationals were discovered in a refrigerated trailer on 23 October 2019, After receiving this message from his boss, Robinson got out of his cab, opened the trailer door and discovered the bodies, The moment lorry driver Maurice Robinson opened the trailer door and discovered the bodies inside was captured on CCTV, Ronan Hughes (left) met Gheorghe Nica at a budget hotel in Thurrock, Essex, learned of his son's death via social media, admitted his limited role in the people-smuggling operation, US porn star declared unfit for sex crimes trial, Jeremy Renner TV show poster edited after accident, Celebrities who say their children will get no inheritance, Germany: We are no longer reliant on Russian energy, City asks Madonna if it can borrow her painting, Keep cake away from office, says food adviser. He said on the fatal trip the temperature had been rising along with the carbon dioxide levels throughout, hitting 40C (104F) while the container was at sea on 22 October 2019. [41], On 26 October, the Irish police said they had detained a man in his 20s at Dublin Port who was of interest to Essex Police as part of its investigation into the lorry deaths. [35], On 25 October, police arrested a man and a woman from Warrington, Cheshire, on suspicion of manslaughter and conspiracy to traffic people,[36] and another man at Stansted Airport regarding the same offences. "For the 39 men and women inside, that lorry had become their tomb. A number of the migrants discovered in France were later found dead inside the container in Essex. [42] A Belgian public prosecutor said that this was the lorry driver they had been searching for, who had been seen on CCTV ten times at Zeebrugge while dropping off the refrigerated trailer. [87], Channel 4 postponed a television series called Smuggled that was due to air on 28 October, in which British citizens try to smuggle themselves from mainland Europe to the UK. The court heard some of their final desperate phone messages, including one where a man spoke with ragged breaths as he apologised to his family. It then travelled through the Republic of Ireland to Dublin, and from there by sea to Holyhead in Wales, from where it was driven to Purfleet. VideoChess gets a risqu makeover, The Nigerian influencers paid to manipulate your vote, How a baffling census delay is hurting Indians, How Mafia boss was caught at a clinic after 30 years. What happened in the Ukraine helicopter crash? Sense of injustice lingers after Seoul Halloween crush, Chess gets a risqu makeover. An international criminal investigation into a major people-smuggling operation was set to begin. Det Ch Insp Stoten said: "This crime group have been stopped on many, many, occasions in Europe and the UK - and they continued. Ronan Hughes, 41, and Gheorghe Nica, 43, played "leading roles" in the smuggling conspiracy and were jailed for 20 and 27 years respectively. [80], On 21 March 2022, Dragos-Stefan Damian was jailed for three years and ten months after being found guilty of conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration. We've just seen what has been said online. [4] Other refugee groups have expressed concern that the border confusion surrounding Brexit will give more opportunities for groups to commit similar crimes. Sign up to the EssexLive newsletter below for the latest news straight to your inbox: If you're looking for a way to stay up-to-date with the latest breaking news from around Essex, the EssexLive newsletter is a good place to start. Shortly after 01:00, having picked up the trailer, Robinson got a SnapChat message from Ronan Hughes, his 40-year-old haulage boss from County Monaghan, Ireland. She said: "We worked on the land and it was hard. Sign up here. It was a discovery that would hurl Essex into the international spotlight as police, press and forensics descended on the industrial estate that had become the scene of a devastating mass grave. The trial exposed for the first time a complex and lucrative operation which has for years illegally brought Vietnamese people into the UK. One of the biggest murder probes in British history is launched after the horrific discovery at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. Earlier this month, Gazmir Nuzi, 43, of Barclay Road, Tottenham, north London, was sentenced, having admitted his limited role in the people-smuggling operation. [60], On 17 March 2021 a 23-year-old haulier from Caledon, County Tyrone was charged with conspiracy to assist illegal immigration in connection with the deaths. "I want to come back to my family. [4][14], The ambulance service said that all 39 people were dead before it arrived, and attempts at resuscitation could not be made. However the involvement of the lorry drivers offered them no protection when too many people were packed into one container. "We wouldn't transport animals in that way.". Recordings from some of the victims' final desperate phone messages were played aloud in court. "The manager went to get into work this morning and it was cordoned off and we've been moved to a different area," Mr Freeland said. He was charged with 41 offences, including 39 of manslaughter, and extradition proceedings began in the Irish High Court. During the lengthy court cases at the Old Bailey in London, shocking details from the tragedy were uncovered. [5] In the evening of 23 October, the Belgian prosecutor's office announced that they would also investigate the lorry's transit through their country. Parents of one of the youngest victims, Nguyen Huy Hung, who was 15 when he died, paid tribute to their peaceful and smart son. Lorry driver Maurice Robinson and haulage boss Ronan Hughes had previously admitted the manslaughter of the migrants. [37] On 27 October, it was announced that these three had been released on bail. "On that boat in the night, there was no-one to hear them and no-one to help them. All 39 people who were found dead in the back of a lorry in Essex have now been named. Have a good life.". "There were desperate attempts to contact the outside world by phone and to break through the roof of the container," the judge said. 2023 BBC. The bodies were packed so tightly together, he said, that he could only check "the bodies I could reach". On Saturday afternoon, Essex Police provided a fresh update revealing at the 25-year-old lorry driver had now been charged. "[64], in July 2022, Essex Police released an image of a man who is wanted in connection with the deaths. 2023 BBC. Germany: We are no longer reliant on Russian energy, City asks Madonna if it can borrow her painting, US porn star declared unfit for sex crimes trial, Jeremy Renner TV show poster edited after accident, Keep cake away from office, says food adviser, Maximum two drinks a week, Canada guidance advises. "We thought maybe someone had broken into a lorry, but it's just awful. [66] He was remanded in custody until 13 December when he appeared in court, via a video link from Belmarsh Prison in London where he was being held until his trial. (From left) Gheorghe Nica and Ronan Hughes were jailed for a total of 47 years, while Eamonn Harrison was sentenced to 18 years. In addition, Valentin Calota from Birmingham and Christopher Kennedy, from County Armagh, were found guilty of immigration offences. Essex crime: Rayleigh mum and son jailed for collective ten years for wanting to sell 750,000 of cocaine Crime Bookmark Person tries to chase driver fleeing scene of Romford lamppost crash - but falls over and is taken to hospital Romford Bookmark Boy, aged 15, charged after teen found with stabbed leg and knife recovered near Barking tube station From this point onwards, a sensor inside the trailer tells its own story of a relentless rise in temperature. He always dreamed of going to the UK and he tried very hard to study at school as well as learning English for that purpose. [57][58], On 26 May 2020 French and Belgian police announced the arrest of 26 people suspected of human trafficking in relation to the Essex lorry deaths. It's one of the many ways that you can read the news that matters to you from EssexLive. CCTV footage then placed the primary suspects together at the same hotel. [80], Three other men were sentenced for conspiring to facilitate unlawful immigration: lorry driver Christopher Kennedy was sentenced to seven years, pickup driver Valentin Calota was sentenced to four and a half years and Alexandru-Ovidiu Hanga was sentenced to three years. One of those was Nguyen Thi Hong, whose husband Bui Phan Thang died in the lorry. Pic: Essex Police, Police and forensics at the crime scene in Grays, Essex, in October 2019, Lorry driver Maurice Robinson is seen leaving Purfleet port in Essex after collecting the trailer containing the migrants, Gheorghe Nica pleaded not guilty to the manslaughter of the migrants. [68], A second man, from County Armagh, also appeared at the Central Criminal Court on 13 December and pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit human trafficking offences between 1 May 2018 and 24 October 2019, by arranging or facilitating the travel of other people with a view to exploitation. Ambulance crews were called to an industrial estate in Grays, Essex, just before 1.40am local time on Wednesday, October 23. [80], Two lorry drivers who were also involved in the incident were also jailed. PC Jack Emerson was one of the first at the scene. Many travelled to other countries in Europe, such as Poland and Russia, before being drawn by the prospect of finding better-paid work in the UK, a lure that saw them move west to France or Belgium before crossing the North Sea. So he did.". The two ringleaders of the people-smuggling gang responsible for the deaths of 39 Vietnamese people who suffocated in a sealed refrigeration container as they were transported across the Channel from France have received prison sentences of 27 and 20 years. [55] On 29 April 2020 he appeared before the High Court via videolink, during which he was described as the "ringleader" of a criminal gang. [82], UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a tweet that he was "appalled" at the incident, giving his thoughts to the victims and their families, adding that the Home Office was working alongside Essex Police on the case. We contacted them and they told us how to go about it. In the BBC documentary Hunting the Essex Lorry Killers, it shared some of the devastating testimonies from the victims' families. The families of the victims who lost their lives continue to mourn their losses, with many still struggling with the debts of the money they spent in search of a better life. Pham Thi Ngoc Oanh, 28, from Nghe An, wrote a text message that was never sent, The 39 people who died in the back of a trailer as it crossed the North Sea between Zeebrugge and the UK, Hoang Van Tiep's parents Hoang Thi Ai (left) and Hoang Van Lanh said their son had paid for a "VIP service", They are callous and they are dangerous and they are out to exploit these people. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. I am sorry. [40] He was remanded in custody, to appear at the Central Criminal Court on 25 November. [61] On 14 April 2021 he pleaded not guilty and is due to stand trial in 2023. After his brief drive around Grays, Robinson again parked up at the industrial estate. Maurice Robinson, 26, the lorry driver from Northern Ireland who collected the container containing the 39 people from the port in Essex in October 2019, and also pleaded guilty last year to . [35][39] He appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court on 28 October, when the Crown Prosecution Service alleged that he was part of a "global ring" of people smugglers. Most of the migrants are believed to have boarded the lorry container in northern France before it was driven to Zeebrugge and loaded on to a cargo ship bound for Purfleet on 22 October 2019. In September 2019, the younger cousin asked his parents if he could travel to the UK. Essex lorry deaths: Men jailed for killing 39 migrants in trailer 22 January 2021 Essex lorry deaths The 39 people who died in the back of a trailer as it crossed the North Sea. Families of Vietnamese migrants found dead in lorry in Essex to be paid 180,000, Essex lorry deaths: Man charged with 39 counts of manslaughter appears in court, Essex lorry deaths: Police release image of suspect Marius Draghici wanted in connection with deaths of 39 Vietnamese nationals. "He said he would not go in a container lorry and that it needed to be safe, even though the truck option was a lot cheaper.". All of the others convicted were Vietnamese or Belgians of Vietnamese origin and were accused of buying supplies for the migrants, transporting them in taxis or acting as look-outs at safe houses. The discovery of the Thurrock 39 all began with one 999 call from 26-year-old lorry driver Maurice Robinson. [73][74], In January 2021, an extradition hearing was held at Westminster Magistrates' Court for a Vietnamese man, said to be aged 18, who appeared via videolink from HM Prison Wandsworth accused of transporting 10 of the 39 from a safehouse in Anderlecht. Maurice Robinson, 26, the lorry driver from Northern Ireland who collected the container containing the 39 people from the port in Essex in October 2019, and also pleaded guilty last year to manslaughter and people-smuggling, was sentenced to 13 years and four months. We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. Chilling records of his call revealed his unnervingly calm revelation of the dead bodies to the ambulance service. [85], Extra UK immigration officers are to be deployed at the Belgian border port of Zeebrugge and more Border Force staff will operate at Purfleet as a result of the incident. A teenager's body was among the 39 discovered in the HGV at around 1.40am. The ship left Zeebrugge in the middle of the afternoon, bound for the port of Purfleet-on-Thames, in Essex. [18], On 11 February 2020, Essex Police said that post-mortems gave a combination of hypoxia and hyperthermia as the provisional causes of death. Among those killed was a married couple - Tran Hai Loc and Nguyen Thi Van. [69][70], On 28 August 2020 Ronan Hughes, from County Armagh, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of 39 people found in the trailer. Read about our approach to external linking. [67], On 15 May 2020 Ronan Hughes, the man accused of being a ringleader, attended the High Court in Ireland by video link from Cloverhill Prison in Dublin. A 25-year-old lorry driver from Northern Ireland has been arrested, Essex Police says. Robinson, Harrison, Hughes and Nica were all jailed for manslaughter in January this year, receiving jail sentences of up to 27 years. [92][93] The question was then further criticised by Chinese media after the victims were found not to be Chinese. Sweeney said there was a need for deterrent sentences because the control of immigration, which affects the social fabric of our country, our economy and our security is an area of considerable public concern. He was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. More than 1,300 Essex police officers were involved in the case. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. [69] The counsel for the state pointed out that the 39 people died after the trailer had entered the UK and that it was nonsensical to suggest their deaths had occurred anywhere other than the UK. "He didn't go straight to the UK, he went to Germany first. We were struggling to give our children a proper education. On the morning of October 23, 2019, the bodies of 39 Vietnamese men, women and children were discovered dead in the back of a lorry in Grays, Essex. The man is accused of "conspiring to smuggle non-EU nationals into the UK, contrary to immigration law, between 1 May 2018 and 24 October 2019. Two ringleaders receive sentences of 27 and 20 years after 39 Vietnamese people suffocated in container. When Robinson stopped on a nearby industrial estate, he found that the migrants were all dead. Nine people have so far been convicted of crimes related to the incident in the UK and a further nineteen have been jailed in Belgium. Det Ch Insp Stoten said: "The officers who attended that - most of them were very young in service and some of them had never experienced a dead person, a deceased person, before. ", Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. He was paid 25,000 in cash to pick up the container and had been instructed by Hughes to open the lorry trailer to give the migrants air shortly after collecting it from Purfleet docks, but he found they were all dead. [65], On 25 November 2019, Maurice Robinson pleaded guilty in the Central Criminal Court to conspiring with others to assist illegal immigration and acquiring criminal property. Maurice Robinson, of Laurel Drive in Craigavon, Nothern Ireland, was arrested on suspicion of murder shortly after the bodies were found at the Waterglade Industrial Estate. The judge said Nica "recruited and paid the drivers whose job it was to collect the migrants when they reached the drop-off site in this country and to drive them to the safe house(s) where they were to be held until payment". In a tweet published shortly before 10.30am Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: "Im appalled by this tragic incident in Essex. Eleven of the victims - believed to be Chinese nationals - were taken by ambulance from . [28], On 29 October, Essex Police announced that two brothers from Armagh, Northern Ireland, one of whom owned the haulage company operating the lorry cab detained at Grays, were wanted on suspicion of manslaughter and human trafficking offences related to the incident.
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