essex lorry deaths crime scene photos

". Read about our approach to external linking. Nica claimed he told Robinson not to move the trailer and to call 999. On Saturday afternoon, Essex Police provided a fresh update revealing at the 25-year-old lorry driver had now been charged. A number of the migrants discovered in France were later found dead inside the container in Essex. He knew, in his own words, what had happened was "very, very bad" and that there would be a "big investigation". CCTV footage then placed the primary suspects together at the same hotel. He was also a good player. He found none. He said the victims died in an "unimaginable way, because of the utter greed of these criminals". Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Stoten, who led the investigation, described how one single fingerprint found in another one of Hughes' lorries was "gold dust", leading to another man who made the same journey a week before. First to the scene were paramedics from the East of England Ambulance Service, who were praised by chief executive Dorothy Hosein for their "incredible professionalism in very difficult circumstances". Officers discovered a metal post on the lorry floor. [59] Authorities said a series of simultaneous early morning raids had taken place in both countries on 25 May 2020. It was here that a number of people were seen being delivered by taxi to an agricultural shed, before later clambering into a lorry. A port worker who drove the trailer off the ship later reported noticing a pungent smell that was "similar to waste". They had been promised safe passage to our shores and they were lied to. These are the first photographs of the lorry where 39 bodies were discovered today. 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. [11] The police suspect that an Irish people-smuggling ring which has been under investigation for around a year might be involved. The red and white lorry is pictured at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, Essex, surrounded by forensic teams. Robinson had driven from Holyhead, a major Irish Sea port in north-west Wales, to collect the trailer. He pleaded guilty last year to 39 counts of manslaughter and conspiring to bring people into the country unlawfully. It was accepted he was not a member of the organised crime group behind the smuggling operation. During the lengthy court cases at the Old Bailey in London, shocking details from the tragedy were uncovered. [80], Two lorry drivers who were also involved in the incident were also jailed. Despite initially protesting his innocence in police interviews, officers quickly discovered Robinson was actually part of an enormous lucrative people-smuggling ring - led by kingpin Ronan Hughes. (From left) Gheorghe Nica and Ronan Hughes were jailed for a total of 47 years, while Eamonn Harrison was sentenced to 18 years. I cannot take care of you. [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. "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. Maurice Robinson, who collected the trailer from Purfleet and discovered the dead bodies, was sentenced to 13 years and 4 months. "There is no VIP service - these are the lies people are told to be exploited," he said. Speculation was rife as drips of information were fed through, clarified and confirmed while politicians stepped in to comment on the deadly discovery. There were days when he called ten times. In a tweet published shortly before 10.30am Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: "Im appalled by this tragic incident in Essex. "For the 39 men and women inside, that lorry had become their tomb. 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. 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. The lorry cab, a Scania R-series, was registered in Bulgaria in 2017 in the name of a company owned by an Irish citizen, but had not returned there since, according to the Bulgarian foreign ministry. The county marks the two-year anniversary of one of the worst tragedies it's ever seen, Get the latest on all the biggest court and crime news in Essex direct from our expert court reporter. Five people were found not guilty. 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Read about our approach to external linking. "I didn't take my eyes off the lorry while I was on the [999] call.". As they began to die inside the dark container, where the temperature had risen to 38.5C, they recorded farewell messages for their relatives. Robinson gave a thumbs-up in reply. 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. [1][2] The refrigerated trailer was leased on 15 October from a rental company in County Monaghan, Republic of Ireland. ", "Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on October 25, 2019", Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China, "CNN slammed for rushing to attack China in report of UK lorry death", "China says identity of victims still being confirmed", "PM orders investigation into overseas trafficking of Vietnamese citizens", "Essex lorry deaths: Vietnam condemns 'human trafficking', "Vietnam offers loans to families to return bodies", "Vietnam offers grieving families loans to return bodies", "Fundraisers help send Vietnam's lorry dead home", "Essex lorry deaths: All victims' bodies back in Vietnam", Young Vietnamese workers risking life and death on 'the line' to Europe, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Essex_lorry_deaths&oldid=1120801721, October 2019 events in the United Kingdom, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 8 November 2022, at 22:09. 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. He had wanted to give his wife and three children a better life. The ambulance service informed Essex Police, who arrived shortly afterwards. 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 bodies of 39 migrants found dead in a lorry trailer in Essex were so closely packed together the first policeman on the scene could not check them all for signs of life, a court has heard. We were struggling to give our children a proper education. One man spoke with ragged breaths to his family, saying: I cant breathe. The deaths have been a wake-up call for police. Many of the 28 men, eight women and three boys found dead in the trailer were in Paris the day before their deaths. "No-one would choose to travel in such a dangerous way," she said. 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. 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. [56] His solicitor applied for bail and the prosecution opposed it. Smugglers often force migrants to work off the cost of the trip in slave-like conditions. RM 2B4WWCW - Southend, Essex, UK. "We have arrested the lorry driver in connection with the incident who remains in police custody as our enquiries continue. After his brief drive around Grays, Robinson again parked up at the industrial estate. [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". They are believed to have been either victims of human trafficking (for example, as forced labourers), migrants who paid smugglers to move them to the United Kingdom, or both. [102] By the end of November, all bodies had been repatriated to Vietnam. 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. He had seen a friend's Facebook post showing that they had made it to London. Despite the shock and horror, less than 36 hours after the discovery, as little as six bunches were laid at the site of the mass murder - something we stepped in to change, calling for residents to join us in laying flowers at the scene. ", Video evidence showed how the trainer containing 39 Vietnamese migrants made its way to the UK. "[53], On 17 April 2020, a 42-year-old man from Tottenham was charged with an immigration offence related to the deaths. Matthew Long, deputy director of National Crime Agency, said the whole idea of some kind of special service was a con. Inside was an almost unimaginable sight: 39 people, 10 of them teenagers, were dead. From Bierne, the lorry is seen on CCTV footage making its way across France and towards the Belgian port of Zeebrugge, where it was left to be loaded unaccompanied on to a ferry called the MV Clementine. Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Post-mortem examinations found they died of overheating and a lack of oxygen. 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. "The day he left it was 6th September. The crime scene is just a short distance from intu Lakeside shopping centre and the M25 Dartford Crossing. [54] On 20 April 2020 a 40-year-old man was arrested in the Republic of Ireland in connection with the deaths. A similar run was stopped at the mouth of the Eurotunnel at Coquelles in France on 14 October, when 20 Vietnamese migrants were discovered. Driver Maurice Robinson pulled his articulated lorry over on a largely deserted Essex industrial park. Essex lorry deaths: UK Vietnamese group hands photos of missing to police. [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. PC Jack Emerson was one of the first at the scene. Each of them had climbed inside the lorry - emblazoned with the words "the ultimate dream" - in search of a new life, that would actually lead them to their deaths. [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". [9] It arrived in Purfleet, a town with a port on the Thames, at around 00:30 on 23 October and was picked up with the cab there about half-an-hour later. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected], Man sentenced over lorry deaths smuggling ring, Lorry deaths driver 'blind to smuggling risks', Dad learned of son's lorry death via social media, Two found guilty of killing 39 migrants in lorry, Irish smuggling connection to Essex lorry deaths, The supposed 'VIP' journey that killed 39 people, 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, German police deny Greta's detainment was staged, Iran man who beheaded wife jailed for eight years, Maximum two drinks a week, Canada guidance advises. [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. The friend put him in touch with a Vietnamese mystery man called Phong. Robinson, from County Armagh, collected the trailer when it arrived on UK shores just after midnight on 23 October. Four men have been jailed for the manslaughter of 39 Vietnamese migrants found dead in a lorry trailer in Essex. [91], In an editorial headlined, "The UK must bear responsibility," the Global Times, a state-run newspaper, said that the responsibility for the deaths lay with Britain and other European countries. 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. [79], On 22 January 2021 the culprits were jailed for the incident. He did not have a chance to fulfil his dream, they said in a statement. [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. Lorry driver Eamonn Harrison, 24, also from Northern Ireland, who collected the migrants in northern France and drove the container to Zeebrugge, was found guilty of people-smuggling and 39 counts of manslaughter in December. When Witness X finally arrived in the UK, he and the other migrants were met by a fleet of black cars at Orsett Farm, in Orsett, Essex. They were found on the floor of the trailer holding hands. [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. Witness X asked that friend for help. [4][14] The lorry driver was a 25-year-old man from Portadown, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. "He told me that he would only go on a 'VIP package', in a private car," she said. [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. [44] On 20 April 2020, one of the brothers, a 40-year-old man, was arrested by Garda in the Republic of Ireland on a European Arrest Warrant and charged with 39 counts of manslaughter and immigration offences. [69] Judge Burns remanded the accused until 12 June 2020, when Ireland's High Court ordered his extradition to the UK. "I want to come back to my family. "We thought maybe someone had broken into a lorry, but it's just awful. One of them, a man known to the court only as Witness X, gave evidence at the Old Bailey. During the voyage, the temperature rose from the high 20s all the way up to 38.5C (101F), by which point the air was too toxic for human life. [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. Lorry driver Maurice Robinson, 26, of Craigavon, leaving Purfleet port, Essex, Purfleet Thames Terminal the day 39 bodies were found in a container in Grays, The lorry was discovered in Waterglade Industrial Park on Eastern Avenue in Grays, (Image: (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)), The 39 victims and their families had paid thousands to give them a better life in Britain, Court artist sketch of Gheorghe Nica (left) and Eamonn Harrison (right) two of four men to face trial, at the Old Bailey, Bui Phan Thang, 37, from Ha Tinh, one of the 39 Vietnamese migrants. 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