UK Police identify all 39 migrants who died during people smuggling operation in Essex truck tragedy
UK police have released the names of all 39 people found dead in the back of a death-trap lorry in Essex last month — including two 15-year-old boys.
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UK police say they have formally identified the 39 people found dead in a container truck in southeastern England and notified their families in the apparent people-smuggling tragedy.
Nguyen Huy Hung and Dinh Dinh Binh, both 15, were the youngest Vietnamese victims in the refrigerated container after it left Zeebrugge in Belgium.
The family of Nguyen expressed fears he was in the lorry after being unable to contact him since he was supposed to have left for the UK.
It is believed his parents are already in England and had paid £10,000 to get their youngest son into the country.
Pham Thi Tra My, 26, has also been confirmed as one of the dead after she texted her mum to say she was “dying”.
Authorities had been working with Vietnamese police and the coroner to identify the bodies that were found October 23 in the back of a truck in an industrial park in the English town of Grays.
“This is an important step in the investigation and enables us to work with our Vietnamese Police colleagues to support the families of those victims,” Assistant Chief Constable Tim Smith. “It is only right that we provide an opportunity for family members to take in the news confirming the death of their loved ones before releasing any further information.”
Police last week said all of the victims were Vietnamese citizens.
DNA samples were taken from families in Vietnam who suspected their missing relatives may have been on that truck. British police have charged 25-year-old Maurice Robinson from Northern Ireland with 39 counts of manslaughter and conspiracy to traffic people.
They say he drove the cab of the truck to the English port of Purfleet, where it picked up the container, which had arrived by ferry from the port of Zeebrugge in Belgium.
Three other people have been released on bail pending further investigation in the case.
FULL LIST OF NAMES
Pham Thi Tra My, 26-year-old woman from Ha Tinh
Nguyen Dinh Lurong, 20-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Nguyen Huy Phong, 35-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Vo Nhan Du, 19-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Tran Manh Hung, 37-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Tran Khanh Tho, 18-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Vo Van Linh, 25-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Nguyen Van Nhan, 33-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Bui Phan Thang, 37-year-old man from Ha Tinh
Nguyen Huy Hung, 15-year-old boy from Ha Tinh
Tran Thi Tho, 21-year-old woman from Nghe An
Bui Thi Nhung, 19-year-old woman from Nghe An
Vo Ngoc Nam, 28-year-old man from Nghe An
Nguyen Dinh Tu, 26-year-old man from Nghe An
Le Van Ha, 30-year-old man from Nghe An
Tran Thi Ngoc, 19-year-old woman from Nghe An
Nguyen Van Hung, 33-year-old man from Nghe An
Hoang Van Tiep, 18-year-old man from Nghe An
Cao Tien Dung, 37-year-old man from Nghe An
Cao Huy Thanh, 33-year-old man from Nghe An
Tran Thi Mai Nhung, 18-year-old woman from Nghe An
Nguyen Minh Quang, 20-year-old man from Nghe An
Le Trong Thanh, 44-year-old man from Dien Chau
Pham Thi Ngoc Oanh, 28-year-old woman from Nghe An
Hoang Van Hoi, 24-year-old man from Nghe An
Nguyen Tho Tuan, 25-year-old man from Nghe An
Dang Huu Tuyen, 22-year-old man from Nghe An
Nguyen Trong Thai, 26-year-old man from Nghe An
Nguyen Van Hiep, 24-year-old man from Nghe An
Nguyen Thi Van, 35-year-old woman from Nghe An
Tran Hai Loc, 35-year-old man from Nghe An
Duong Minh Tuan, 27-year-old man from Quang Binh
Nguyen Ngoc Ha, 32-year-old man from Quang Binh
Nguyen Tien Dung, 33-year-old man from Quang, Binh
Phan Thi Thanh, 41-year-old woman from Hai Phong
Nguyen Ba Vu Hung, 34-year-old man from Thua Tien Hue
Dinh Dinh Thai Quyen, 18-year-old man from Hai Phong
Tran Ngoc Hieu, 17-year-old boy from Hai Duong
Dinh Dinh Binh, 15-year-old boy from Hai Phong
LAST WORDS
The migrants left bloody handprints on the inside doors of the metal container, according to reports.
The Sun reports, emergency services found the dead stowaways naked or partially clothed inside the icy tomb, according to sources.
A young woman texted her mum to say she was “dying”.
A source told the Mirror: “When the door of the container was opened, first responders were shocked to see dozens of dead bodies piled on top of one another.
“The bodies closest to the doors had foam coming from their mouths and were in the early stages of rigor mortis.
“There were bloody handprints all along the inside of the lorry door where they must have been banging for help.
“[The dead people] were wearing little clothing, and in some cases were naked.”
The details of a tragic last text message sent by Pham Thi Try Ma have been made public.
MORE: What did ‘death truck driver’ know
The family of Pham Thi Tra My, 26, have not heard from her since her haunting message.
She wrote: “I’m sorry Mom. My path to abroad doesn’t succeed. Mom, I love you so much! I’m dying bcoz I can’t breath … I’m from Nghen, Can Loc, Ha Tinh, Vietnam … I am sorry, Mom”.
The text was sent around the time the container was in transit from Belgium to England, where the grim discovery was made 11.40am AEDT on Wednesday.
The new detail comes as China has said that it was not confirmed all of the 39 people killed inside the container were from the Communist country.
However Pham had travelled to China before embarking on a trip to London.
Hoa Nghiem of Human Rights Space in Vietnam said Pham’s family were waiting for news.
“It was told on the news that all 39 people were Chinese but Tra My’s family is trying to verify if their daughter was among them as the last dying text from her was (at around the same time), “ she said on Twitter.
“(Pham) went to China and planned to go to England via France, a contact with her family told me. Her family is looking for help to identify their daughter.”
MORE SUSPECTS ARRESTED
Maurice “Mo” Robinson, the 25-year-old Northern Irish driver of the refrigerated truck, has been charged with manslaughter, money-laundering and conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration.
Ronan Hughes, 40, and his brother Christopher, 34, are wanted on suspicion of manslaughter and human trafficking.
A fourth suspect has been arrested at a UK airport as the investigation into the people smuggling tragedy widens.
British police have confirmed they arrested a 48-year-old Northern Irish man at Stansted Airport.
It was unclear if the man was trying to flee to escape punishment over the deaths of 39 migrants.
Illegal immigrants, some of whom paid $A50,000 to be taken in horrific circumstances from China to England, may now be key to the investigation.
Police fear some may be too scared to speak, with reports that Chinese gangs keep some as slave workers even after they have paid their life savings to reach the UK.
“I would also like to make an appeal to anyone living illegally in this country, who could help our investigation. Please come forward and speak to us without fear,” Detective Chief Constable Mills said.
“I can assure you that your information will be received in strictest confidence and no criminal action will be taken against you.”
Tra My's photo, posted with permission from her family's contact pic.twitter.com/n3MvlvcFQn
— Hoa Nghiem (@HoaNghiem3) October 25, 2019
MAN, WOMAN, ARRESTED OVER “DEATH TRUCK”
Prior to the fourth arrest two more arrests were made in relation to the death truck.
Joanna Maher, 38, was picked up under suspicion of people smuggling and manslaughter.
Her husband Thomas, 38, was also arrested on the same allegations.
The couple had claimed they had sold the Scania truck about a year before the deadly discovery this week.
Now they are at the centre of the probe into how the migrants were killed as they made a desperate attempt to enter Britain in a refrigerated container shipped from Belgium.
Thomas Maher had denied any knowledge of the human cargo when he spoke outside his house before he was arrested.
“It’s absolutely disgusting what has happened,” he said.
“We owned the cab and sold it on October 3 last year to a company in Southern Ireland.
“I’ve made contact with the police and made them aware that I was the previous owner.
“Seeing the cab on TV wasn’t nice and obviously we are not a part of that.
“We still have trucks, and immigrants have always been a problem in Dover and Calais.”
Essex Police said in a statement that they were questioning a man and a woman, both 38, of Warrington, Chesire, in the north west of England.
“We have carried out warrants in Cheshire as part of the investigation into 39 bodies being discovered in a lorry trailer in Grays, (Essex),” the statement said.
“As a result, a 38-year-old man and a 38-year-old woman from Warrington have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to traffic people and on suspicion of 39 counts of manslaughter.”
CHINESE ‘SNAKEHEAD’ GANG MAY BE BEHIND TRAGEDY
The arrest of the man and woman from Warrington comes amid reports a ruthless Chinese “Snakehead” gang is behind the people smuggling plot that lead to the deaths.
Eight women and 31 men were found dead in Grays, Essex on Wednesday, in the back of a truck. They had reportedly frozen to death.
The gang roams the streets for victims, according to The Mirror, and charges £30,000 ($A56,000) for the treacherous journey.
Those hoping for a better life in the West are flown from China’s Fujian region to Europe, with all their expenses paid. They are then loaded in to goods trucks and subjected to hours of darkness with no food, ventilation, water or toilet facilities.
The Snakeheads have been linked to deaths in the UK previously, where in one tragic event in June 2000, fifty bodies were found in a refrigerated contained in Dover.
TRUCK DRIVER REPORTEDLY CALLED FOR HELP
It comes as reports out of the UK suggested it was actually the driver, Mo Robinson, who called emergency services. Mr Robinson reportedly opened the container to retrieve some paperwork and found the piles of bodies. He then phoned emergency services before passing out, one witness claimed.
Police were given the grim task of trying to identify the victims.
“We have since confirmed that eight of the deceased are women and 31 are men and all are believed to be Chinese nationals,” a police statement said.
“Of these, 38 are believed to be adults, and one is a young adult woman. We previously reported that she may have been a teenager.”
Police are investigating whether the victims were being trafficked by criminal gangs operating in the UK who sell them to work in nail salons, brothels, massage parlours and restaurants.
The 25-year-old’s home in County Armagh, Northern Ireland, was raided before police entered a nearby home he used to share with his parents, who have flown to England to support their son.
It was believed people smugglers used refrigerated trucks to avoid heat scanners at ports.
The container, which was found at the Waterglade Industrial Park in Essex, has been moved.
It has emerged the baby-faced suspect is about to become a father, reportedly to twins.
Mr Robinson’s brother reportedly told BelfastLive the family hadn’t heard from him and “don’t know what is going on”.
A family friend also said they had been “told nothing” by authorities who haven’t even informed them whether or not he had been arrested.
Local residents have also spoken about the incident with some saying “they couldn’t believe” the incident would happen in their area.
Meanwhile, Essex Police have corrected their earlier theories about how the truck entered the UK, now saying it came into the country via Belgium.
Originally it was thought both parts of the vehicle had entered Britain at Holyhead in North Wales on Saturday and to have originally started its journey in Bulgaria.
But the Bulgarian foreign ministry said while the vehicle was registered in Bulgaria by a company owned by an Irishwoman on June 19, 2017, it had left the next day and never returned.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said his country had no other connection with the deaths.
Police believe the trailer travelled by ferry across the English Channel from Zeebrugge in Belgium into Purfleet port on the River Thames.
Emergency services were called to Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, about 32km east of London, where they made the grim discovery.
The truck was later driven away to a secure location at nearby Tilbury Docks so the bodies could be recovered.
The new details shorten the expected time frame of how long the asylum seekers were in the refrigerated truck.
“Originally, we reported that the lorry (truck) had travelled into the country through Holyhead on Saturday 19 October,” Essex Police said in a statement.
39 people have been found dead inside a lorry container at an industrial park in Essex. The vehicle is believed to have come from Bulgaria and entered the UK at Holyhead in north Wales on Saturday.
— Sky News (@SkyNews) October 23, 2019
Get the latest on this story here: https://t.co/CelDan5lhp pic.twitter.com/pkywqttYNe
“After further inquiries, we now believe that the trailer travelled from Zeebrugge (Belgium) into Purfleet (England) and docked in the Thurrock area shortly after 12.30am this morning (10.30 AEDT)
“The tractor unit of the lorry is believed to have originated in Northern Ireland.
“We believe the lorry and trailer left the port shortly after 1.05am (11.05am AEDT).”
Verona Murphy, president of the Irish Road Haulage Association, said drivers and staff in the industry were sad and angry.
“We don’t condone illegal immigration, assuming that’s what this is, if this is the case it’s selfish and greedy without any concern for those who wish to cross borders,” she said.
I’m appalled by this tragic incident in Essex. I am receiving regular updates and the Home Office will work closely with Essex Police as we establish exactly what has happened. My thoughts are with all those who lost their lives & their loved ones.
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) October 23, 2019
“We’ve never had incidents where smugglers have offered any of our drivers money but we’ve had a number of incidents where drivers were subject to threats and have reported that.
“What happens out there is a very organised industry and we would say it’s hazardous for everyone involved.”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson condemned the deaths, calling those responsible “evil”.
Mr Johnson said he would support all efforts to bring the people smugglers to justice, as police launched a major murder investigation.
None of the people inside the container could be saved.
Mr Johnson said he was appalled and would fight for justice.
“We know that this trade is going on — all such traders in human beings should be hunted down and brought to justice,” he said.
And he also put his heart out to the police and ambulance officers who were called to the scene.
Mr Johnson was in Prime Minister’s Question Time responding to a comment from MP Jackie Doyle-Price, who said: “To put 39 people into a locked metal container shows a contempt for human life that is evil.
“The best thing we can do in memory of those victims is to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.”
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