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. The victims were 28 men, eight women and three children, two of them aged 15. On Saturday afternoon, Essex Police provided a fresh update revealing at the 25-year-old lorry driver had now been charged. The deaths have been a wake-up call for police. [92][93] The question was then further criticised by Chinese media after the victims were found not to be Chinese. A 25-year-old Vietnamese woman is believed to be among the dead after her family received a haunting series of text messages. [33], On 24 October, the Evening Standard speculated that the trailer had travelled from the Netherlands before its departure from Belgium. Speculation was rife as drips of information were fed through, clarified and confirmed while politicians stepped in to comment on the deadly discovery. While the county came to terms with the tragedy on our doorstep, Essex Police launched the largest investigation in its history to bring down members of the international smuggling operation responsible for their deaths. THE 39 migrants who died in the back of a lorry trailer in Essex left bloody handprints on the inside doors of the metal container, it has been reported. 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". [4][14], The ambulance service said that all 39 people were dead before it arrived, and attempts at resuscitation could not be made. [88] The first part was broadcast on 4 November after re-editing in the light of the 39 deaths, despite the Home Office describing the timing as "both insensitive and irresponsible". Read about our approach to external linking. [40] He was remanded in custody, to appear at the Central Criminal Court on 25 November. 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. Smugglers often force migrants to work off the cost of the trip in slave-like conditions. [13] The lorry was in Eastern Avenue at the Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, Essex. "I could visibly see numerous half-naked bodies in the back of the trailer, lying on the trailer floor motionless," he said. We contacted them and they told us how to go about it. 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. Speaking to the emergency call handler, Robinson explained he had just lifted a trailer from the port and found immigrants in the back "lying on the ground.". "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. In the weeks before the tragic journey, the gang, led by Hughes and Nica, organised at least two other journeys smuggling Vietnamese migrants packed into the back of lorries into the UK. The four defendants charged with manslaughter all said they had not intended harm to the victims, but the judge noted that the conspiracy was committed for financial gain. A screengrab of Maurice Robinson leaving Purfleet port. Our enquiries are ongoing to establish what has happened. The risks taken by the crime group responsible for the deaths of 39 migrants found in a lorry container in Essex were 'sadly not unusual', a senior Immigration Enforcement official has said. Valentin Calota, 38, a pickup driver from Romania, who collected migrants from the lorry drop-off spot in Essex and drove them to London during an earlier consignment, was sentenced to four and a half years. [56] Bail was refused on 30 April. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Following a 10-week trial in 2020, Northern Irish lorry driver Eamonn Harrison was found guilty of 39 counts of manslaughter, while Romanian organiser Gheorghe Nica was convicted of the same charges. The court heard Robinson - who discovered the bodies after collecting the trailer when it arrived in Purfleet, Essex - had received a message from Hughes which read: "Give them air quickly, don't let them out.". [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. He got out of the cab, went to the rear of the trailer and opened the doors. [69][70], On 28 August 2020 Ronan Hughes, from County Armagh, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of 39 people found in the trailer. He was immediately released having already served his sentence in custody. [79], On 22 January 2021 the culprits were jailed for the incident. [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. He added at the top of the conspiracy was a Vietnamese man called "Fong", who was based in London. [38] After extended questioning, on 26 October Essex Police charged the driver they had arrested with 39 counts of manslaughter, conspiracy to traffic people, conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and money laundering. "They loaded too many people into a single trailer the people smugglers were under pressure to double up. [86], Campaigners against human trafficking organised a vigil to take place outside the Home Office on 24 October in solidarity with the casualties. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison. "Maybe going to die in the container, can't breathe any more dear," read a text message typed by Pham Thi Ngoc Oanh. "He didn't go straight to the UK, he went to Germany first. [28] The National Crime Agency suggested that organised crime might be involved. Ms Andrews described ringing police again after seeing the news of the 39 deaths on social media. Police release CCTV of missing Essex man not seen for month, Great Oaks, Basildon, closed by police after incident, Clacton Railway Club to host memorial darts tournament, Southend and District Badminton Association week 11, Street light switch-off plan not safe and not sensible, Basildon Eastgate sees worker suffer 'serious injuries' in fall, Ukrainian ministers killed in helicopter crash, Iran man who beheaded wife jailed for eight years, German police deny Greta's detainment was staged. In a tweet published shortly before 10.30am Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: "Im appalled by this tragic incident in Essex. 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. On 23 October 2019 we were called to a scene that no officer could ever have prepared for. [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". Update: Essex police have confirmed that no further action will be taken against Christopher Hughes. Maurice Robinson, 26, was given 13 years and four months, having collected the trailer and opened it in an industrial estate to find the migrants dead. Something went wrong, please try again later. What she was seeing was a people-smuggling operation run by the same gang responsible for the 39 deaths. Maurice Robinson, who collected the trailer from Purfleet and discovered the dead bodies, was sentenced to 13 years and 4 months. [48], On 4 November, Vietnamese police arrested eight suspects in the central province of Ngh An in connection with the smuggling ring. [69] The fact that many locations were mentioned in the warrant did not mean that the offences were extraterritorial and the accused was in the UK and had acted to further an act of conspiracy that underpinned the charges of manslaughter. A National Crime Agency spokesman said that the individual was "suspected by the Belgian authorities of having played a key role in placing at least 10 migrants inside that lorry. 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 red and white lorry is pictured at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, Essex, surrounded by forensic. a recent documentary into the deaths revealed. Pham Thi Tra My, a 26-year-old woman from Ha Tinh, Nguyen Dinh Luong, a 20-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Nguyen Huy Phong, a 35-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Vo Nhan Du, a 19-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Tran Manh Hung, a 37-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Tran Khanh Tho, a 18-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Vo Van Linh, a 25-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Nguyen Van Nhan, a 33-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Bui Phan Thang, a 37-year-old man from Ha Tinh, Nguyen Huy Hung, a 15-year-old boy from Ha Tinh, Tran Thi Tho, a 21-year-old woman from Nghe An, Bui Thi Nhung, a 19-year-old woman from Nghe An, Vo Ngoc Nam, a 28-year-old man from Nghe An, Nguyen Dinh Tu, a 26-year-old man from Nghe An, Le Van Ha, a 30-year-old man from Nghe An, Tran Thi Ngoc, a 19-year-old woman from Nghe An, Nguyen Van Hung, a 33-year-old man from Nghe An, Hoang Van Tiep, a 18-year-old man from Nghe An, Cao Tien Dung, a 37-year-old man from Nghe An, Cao Huy Thanh, a 37-year-old man from Nghe An, Tran Thi Mai Nhung, a 18-year-old woman from Nghe An, Nguyen Minh Quang, a 20-year-old man from Nghe An, Le Ngoc Thanh, a 44-year-old man from Dien Chau, Pham Thi Ngoc Oanh, a 28-year-old woman from Nghe An, Hoang Van Hoi, a 24-year-old man from Nghe An, Nguyen Tho Tuan, a 25-year-old man from Nghe An, Dang Huu Tuyen, a 22-year-old man from Nghe An, Nguyen Trong Thai, a 26-year-old man from Nghe An, Nguyen Van Hiep, a 24-year-old man from Nghe An, Nguyen Thi Van, a 35-year-old woman from Nghe An, Tran Hai Loc, a 35-year-old man from Nghe An, Duong Minh Tuan, a 27-year-old man from Quang Binh, Nguyen Ngoc Ha, a 32-year-old man from Quang Binh, Nguyen Tien Dung, a 33-year-old man from Quang, Binh, Phan Thi Thanh, a 41-year-old woman from Hai Phong, Nguyen Ba Vu Hung, a 34-year-old man from Thua Thien-Hue, Dinh Dinh Thai Quyen, a 18-year-old man from Hai Phong, Tran Ngoc Hieu, a 17-year-old boy from Hai Duong, Dinh Dinh Binh, a 15-year-old boy from Hai Phong. [4], The investigation is being led by Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Stoten, a Senior Investigating Officer within the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate. What happened in the Ukraine helicopter crash? At the Old Bailey, two lorry drivers were also jailed for manslaughter. Twelve days before 39 Vietnamese people were found dead in the container, Marie Andrews was at her mobile home in Orsett, a village about four miles (6km) from Grays. 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. The victims had used a metal pole to try to punch through the roof but only managed to dent the interior. [3] Refrigerated trailers can be kept airtight and frozen to preserve perishables, which could lead to an occupant dying of suffocation or hypothermia should they become trapped inside. Two ringleaders receive sentences of 27 and 20 years after 39 Vietnamese people suffocated in container. He was accused of "conspiracy to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person". It came to light that the 31 men and eight women - including a 15-year-old child - had died in sweltering temperatures in the lorry's sealed container as they were shipped from Zeebrugge to Purfleet. As they began to die inside the dark container, where the temperature had risen to 38.5C, they recorded farewell messages for their relatives. They leave behind two children in Vietnam. "We believe the lorry is from Bulgaria and entered the country at Holyhead on Saturday 19 October and we are working closely with our partners to investigate. 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. He described how he desperately searched for "signs of life", a pulse or a breath. The crime scene is just a short distance from intu Lakeside shopping centre and the M25 Dartford Crossing. Ronan Hughes, 41, who ran a haulage company and organised the lorries and drivers to transport the migrants, was sentenced to 20 years at the Old Bailey on Friday. GPS data showed it had previously travelled to Dunkirk and Lille in France and Bruges in Belgium. 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. After several months in Poland, he made the journey to France with his heart set on making it across the channel to the UK. 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. 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. (From left) Gheorghe Nica and Ronan Hughes were jailed for a total of 47 years, while Eamonn Harrison was sentenced to 18 years. The trial focused on four people-smuggling runs by the gang in the space of just a fortnight in October 2019 which, if they had all been successful, would have brought more than 80 Vietnamese migrants into the UK and netted the organisers 800,000. They were both 35. PC Jack Emerson was one of the first at the scene. Robinson gave a thumbs-up in reply. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. She said: "We worked on the land and it was hard. mike gibbins cause of death; is neil norman any relation to barry norman; new fairfield first selectman salary; hershey red azalea care; spring boot rest api return list of objects; peter and philippa mitchell; skagit valley park ranger academy; recent arrests in torrington, ct; least intelligent celebrities; saenz v roe strict scrutiny This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. [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. 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". This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. The trailer had been shipped from the port of Zeebrugge, Belgium, to Purfleet, Essex, UK, and the lorry cab and its driver are believed to have originated from Northern Ireland. "All were to no avail and, before the ship reached Purfleet, [the victims] all died in what must have been an excruciatingly painful death. The driver of the trailer spoke only to hurry them along, Witness X told the court. [56] His solicitor applied for bail and the prosecution opposed it. Vo Van Hong was found guilty of leading a cross-Channel people-trafficking operation that has been linked to the deaths of dozens of people inside the truck that was found on an industrial estate in Grays, Essex, in October 2019. ", Video evidence showed how the trainer containing 39 Vietnamese migrants made its way to the UK. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Matthew Long, deputy director of National Crime Agency, said the whole idea of some kind of special service was a con. Numbers of Vietnamese people reported as potential human trafficking victims in the past three years. It's unclear who they are or exactly how they came into the country but one of the biggest murder investigations in British history is underway. 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. It was accepted he was not a member of the organised crime group behind the smuggling operation. Video evidence showed how the trainer containing 39 Vietnamese migrants made its way to the UK. Helicopter video shows the Lorry in Essex where 39 bodies were found, Thirty-nine people, including a teenager, have been found dead inside a lorry container, Witnesses near the industrial estate described the 'awful' scene, Police are seen at the industrial estate today. Investigations revealed that they suffocated to death in 38 degrees in the refrigerated container, where all the oxygen was sucked out. He had wanted to give his wife and three children a better life. The twice-daily update will deliver the top news and features to your inbox every morning and evening. 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. Was accepted he was remanded in custody, to appear at the 25-year-old lorry had. That no further action will be taken against Christopher Hughes further criticised by Chinese media the. ] Bail was refused on 30 April containing 39 Vietnamese migrants made its to! He went to the UK, he went to Germany first years and 4 months,! Refrigerated container, where all the oxygen was sucked out 28 ] the was! First at the Old Bailey, two of them aged 15 Waterglade Park... 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