Thirteen people charged in France over Essex lorry deaths
(VOVWORLD) -Thirteen suspects arrested by French police over the deaths of 39 Vietnamese people found in a refrigerated lorry in Essex, the UK, have been charged with people trafficking and manslaughter, a judicial source told AFP.
The suspects were arrested on Tuesday in the Paris region, while the alleged key figure in the ring of smugglers was caught in Germany.
The Vietnamese migrants – 31 men and eight women – were found dead in the lorry in an industrial zone in Grays, Essex, in October 2019. The driver of the lorry has already admitted manslaughter.
According to the prosecutor's document, the 39 Vietnamese were taken by Eamonn Harrison on a lorry to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge before being taken on a ferry to the UK. In the UK, the container was brought to an industrial park in Essex County by Maurice Robinson of North Ireland early in the morning of October 23, 2019, before all the people inside the container were found dead.
On 11 February, British Police said the victims died from a combination of lack of oxygen and overheating in the enclosed space. British police continue the investigation of the case and identify the suspects.