", Video evidence showed how the trainer containing 39 Vietnamese migrants made its way to the UK. He was immediately released having already served his sentence in custody. If you have a story suggestion email eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk, 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. Thurrock deaths: Aerial footage of lorry container in Essex where 39 bodies have been found. [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. [5][6][7][8] The trailer was loaded onto the freight ferry Clementine in Zeebrugge in Belgium. On 23 November, it was reported that one of the teenagers later found dead had gone missing from an asylum centre in the Netherlands. We've just seen what has been said online. He called us all the time. This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. [59] Thirteen people were arrested in France. Glen Freeland, from GSF Car Parts which is close to where the bodies were found, said staff could not access the shop on Eastern Avenue on Wednesday morning. More than 1,300 Essex police officers were involved in the case. "I can't breathe," he said. [76], On 21 December 2020, verdicts were returned on Romanian ringleader Gheorghe Nica of Basildon and lorry driver Eamonn Harrison from County Down. [49][50] In February 2020 five men and two women were charged in Vietnam with "organising or broking others to flee abroad or stay abroad illegally". [60] In March 2021, the man appeared in court again accused by Belgian authorities of being a member of a criminal organisation, being involved in human trafficking and using forged documents. Each passenger paid smugglers between 10,000 and 13,000 to be brought from northern France. [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. Eleven of the victims - believed to be Chinese nationals - were taken by ambulance from . "My message to you is that we will find you and we will stop you.". Eamonn Harrison, who delivered the trailer to Zeebrugge was sentenced to 18 years. He too was seeking a better life when, in February last year, he paid up to 20,000 to a trafficker in Vietnam for a visa and a place on a business studies course in Poland. Open up, open up., Another father, Nguyen Tho Tuan, recorded a spoken message for his own family saying: "I am sorry. [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. 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. On all three runs, Nica, of Basildon, Essex, had arranged cars and a van to transport the migrants at the UK end. All 39 people who were found dead in the back of a lorry in Essex have now been named. In a tweet published shortly before 10.30am Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: "Im appalled by this tragic incident in Essex. 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. 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. 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. [4] The deceased31 males and 8 femalesincluded 10 teenagers; the 2 youngest were 15-year-old boys.[15]. [61] On 14 April 2021 he pleaded not guilty and is due to stand trial in 2023. Police believe that the cab was driven from Northern Ireland on 19 October. [14] The investigation was the "largest mass fatality victim identification" investigation in the history of Essex Police. He was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder. From this point onwards, a sensor inside the trailer tells its own story of a relentless rise in temperature. [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". Hughes, an Irish haulier, alternated between legitimate shipments of waffles, soft drinks and wine from warehouses across Europe and illegal smuggling of alcohol, cigarettes and people. The ship left Zeebrugge in the middle of the afternoon, bound for the port of Purfleet-on-Thames, in Essex. he 39 people found dead in a refrigerated lorry were already trapped when they arrived at the Belgian coast en route to England, local officials have said. Essex lorry deaths: The supposed 'VIP' journey that killed 39 people 21 December 2020 Essex lorry deaths Pham Thi Ngoc Oanh, 28, from Nghe An, wrote a text message that was never sent By. Inside was an almost unimaginable sight: 39 people, 10 of them teenagers, were dead. Sign up here. On Saturday afternoon, Essex Police provided a fresh update revealing at the 25-year-old lorry driver had now been charged. [13] The lorry was in Eastern Avenue at the Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, Essex. During the trial, jurors were given a snapshot of the victims - who included a bricklayer, a university graduate and a nail bar technician - and their dreams of a better life. 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. Robinson, from County Armagh, collected the trailer when it arrived on UK shores just after midnight on 23 October. [59], On 15 December 2020, a Vietnamese man who was believed to have been involved in transporting 10 of the 39 migrants from a safehouse in Anderlecht was arrested in Redditch by National Crime Agency officers on a European Arrest Warrant issued by a Belgian judge. Alexandru Hanga, 28, who performed a similar role on one occasion in October 2019, and who last year pleaded guilty to conspiracy to assist unlawful migration, was sentenced to three years in prison. Sentencing, Mr Justice Sweeney said: "I have no doubt that the conspiracy was a sophisticated, long-running and profitable one to smuggle mainly Vietnamese people across the channel.". 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. 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. Every person in that trailer had left behind a family. Read about our approach to external linking. "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. [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. [77], On 11 January 2021, Gazmir Nuzi was sentenced to 10 months imprisonment after admitting a limited role in the smuggling ring, with the prosecution accepting that he was not part of the organised crime group. Those inside had stripped to their underwear in the sweltering heat and tried to bash their way out of the trailer's roof. When Robinson stopped on a nearby industrial estate, he found that the migrants were all dead. At the Old Bailey, two lorry drivers were also jailed for manslaughter. Signing up to the newsletter is simple. "All were to no avail and, before the ship reached Purfleet, [the victims] all died in what must have been an excruciatingly painful death. Read about our approach to external linking. [101], An international fundraiser through GoFundMe raised money to help cover the potential additional debts that the families might incur bringing home the deceased. 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. Have a good life., In the background, a voice could be heard pleading: Come on everyone. Robinson, of Craigavon, County Armagh, returned to his cab before driving off and making his first call to Hughes. 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. Something went wrong, please try again later. 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. "I saw some legs come out. [4][14], The ambulance service said that all 39 people were dead before it arrived, and attempts at resuscitation could not be made. As they began to die inside the dark container, where the temperature had risen to 38.5C, they recorded farewell messages for their relatives. gigs and tours harry styles; ozuna and karol g kissing; thayers witch hazel original vs unscented Video evidence showed how the trainer containing 39 Vietnamese migrants made its way to the UK. Essex lorry deaths: Trafficking ringleader jailed for 15 years after 39 died from suffocation and hyperthermia, The 39 people whose bodies were discovered in a lorry in Grays, Essex, in October 2019. 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 sentenced to 18 years in prison. ", "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. Nica flew out of the country the next day. Our enquiries are ongoing to establish what has happened. It's awful. [86], Campaigners against human trafficking organised a vigil to take place outside the Home Office on 24 October in solidarity with the casualties. [69][70], On 28 August 2020 Ronan Hughes, from County Armagh, pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of 39 people found in the trailer. In the BBC documentary Hunting the Essex Lorry Killers, it shared some of the devastating testimonies from the victims' families. I cannot breathe. Lorry driver Maurice Robinson and haulage boss Ronan Hughes had previously admitted the manslaughter of the migrants. [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. They were left to die, all because of the greed of the men who have been sentenced today., The home secretary, Priti Patel, said: The inhumanity of these callous people smugglers and their dangerous organised criminal networks has rightly been reflected in the sentencing today.. 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. 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. [16][17] There have been a number of incidents in which migrants to Europe died or were injured as a result of dangerous transportation methods. The journey of 23 October and the earlier failed run on 14 October were connected, said Bill Emlyn Jones, who prosecuted the case. Witness X described how he was ushered on to the back of the trailer at a rendezvous point in northern France. [81], In January 2022, 19 people were convicted in Belgium of being part of a people smuggling ring connected to the deaths, including the ringleader Vo Van Hong who was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Ambulance crews were called to an industrial estate in Grays, Essex, just before 1.40am local time on Wednesday, October 23. [59] The police operation was organised with a cross-border team organised by Eurojust that included Belgium, France, the UK and Ireland. [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. 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. Police were called at 5am. Thwarted in France, he said, the smugglers were possibly attempting to "do two loads in one". What happened in the Ukraine helicopter crash? So he did.". What led to her and 38 fellow Vietnamese nationals dying in the dark and sweltering heat of an airtight container? His loss is so sudden for us. Along with lorry driver Eamonn Harrison, 23, he has been found guilty of manslaughter. Robinson gave a thumbs-up in reply. [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. [45], On 1 November, a man from Northern Ireland was re-arrested in the holding cells of the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin following the execution of a European Arrest Warrant issued in the UK. We choose the most important stories of the day to include in the newsletter, including crime, court news, long reads, traffic and travel, food and drink articles and more. 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. 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. [89], In October 2021, the BBC broadcast the hour-long documentary Hunting the Essex Lorry Killers. Four men have been jailed for the manslaughter of 39 Vietnamese migrants found dead in a lorry trailer in Essex. He was accused of "conspiracy to facilitate the commission of a breach of UK immigration law by a non-EU person". 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. This became Witness X who shared his fears and referred to the smugglers as "the mafia" - a testimony that revealed the drivers had known about their passengers. 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. [27], A murder investigation was launched on the morning of the day of the discovery. 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. Nguyen Van Hung, who was 33, and 18-year-old Hoang Van Tiep were from the same village in Nghe An province, in the north of Vietnam. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. 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. Chilling records of his call revealed his unnervingly calm revelation of the dead bodies to the ambulance service. Exactly two years ago, Essex was dealt one of the worst tragedies it's ever seen. He was also a good player. [23], On 3 November, Vietnamese officials provided DNA samples from people in Ngh An Province and essential documents to help identify the deceased. By the end of the trial, the gang involved in the deadly people-smuggling operation were brought to justice. Were possibly attempting to `` do two loads in one '' had previously admitted the manslaughter of Vietnamese! 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