UK - 39 bodies found in lorry, Essex, 23 October 2019

[alice500]

This was interesting ..

39 Bodies found in a lorry in Essex.

very specific that a container is different to a trailer. In this case it is a trailer ... rather than container (so I have learnt something).

Some discussion of the drivers responsibilties .. and even a map showing a point of access to trailers for migrants. I can verify that this is credible. I have seen a group of migrants attempting to gain entry (unsuccessfully) to a lorry at this point myself.

 

[alice500]

Seems like the definition of .... sealed... needs clarification?

 

[CoverMeCagney]

From Alice's link, here is the distinction between a container and a trailer:

It is not a container, a container is a metal box used for shipping on a ship without wheels which can be stacked on top of each other and can be loaded onto a container trailer in order to go on the road.

The unit that was used is a road vehicle, a trailer,with wheels and cannot be stacked. A tractor unit (lorry/cab) will have delivered the trailer to Zeebrugge and left the port. Another tractor unit belonging to the port would have towed it onto the ferry. Another tractor unit belonging to the port in Purfleet would have towed the trailer off the ferry and the tractor unit driven by this Irish guy would have collected the trailer from the port. At no point would the trailer be opened unless requested by customs.

 

[Fidobell]

I saw at some point that the Chinese hold the UK and the EU at least partly responsible for this tragedy.

The story so far suggests that these poor souls made it half way round the world, and perished in the last 100 miles of the journey? At a border.

One has to ask whether the policies and procedures relating to this border have contributed (or even caused) this to happen.

To take an extreme view ... if there was no border.. this would not have happened.

We have to ask why people want to leave an oppressed communist country . All occupants of the lorry would have been aware the life threatening risks yet were prepared to take them
I live in the UK which is becoming increasingly under pressure from illegal immigrants . Border control is needed. In fact , nessesary , to ensure economic stability and safety of all our citizens .

 

[Mrs Marple]

Updated TL
Sunday 20th October

Cab enters Holyhead Wales, time unknown

Tuesday 22nd October

Cab reportedly seen on Eastern Avenue Grays, time disputed

BELGIAN TIME

2.49pm container arrives at Zebrugge port

3pm - ferry departs; this could be 4pm GMT

Wednesday 23rd October

GMT

12.30am boat docks at Purfleet, Essex

1.05am Trailer collected from Purfleet

1.10am truck caught on CCTV on the industrial estate

01.38am Phone call to the emergency services, possibly made by the ambulance crew

(Unsure of exact time) Mo Robinson arrested

17:47 CCTV emerges

24 October 2019:

10:35am Mo Robinson remains in custody

12:02pm Officers confirmed a young woman - initially referred to as a teenager - is among the dead.

Eight of the dead are women and 31 are men.

2:40pm Police have now confirmed they have secured a warrant of further detention from magistrates to continue questioning Mo Robinson for an extra 24 hours.

3:32pm The first eight bodies from the container are set to be moved to a mortuary later on today.

38 year old man and 38 year old woman arrested in Warrington

Friday 25th October

48 year old man from NI arrested at Standsted Airport

Timeline of trailer movement;

1. Sources say the GPS data shows it left Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland on 15 October before crossing over to Northern Ireland and then returning south to Dublin
2. From Dublin, it crossed over to Holyhead in Wales overnight on 16 October
3. That evening, it travelled to continental Europe from Dover to Calais in France
4. Between 17 and 22 October, it moved between various cities in Belgium and France, including Dunkirk, Bruges and Lille
5. On 22 October, it made its final crossing from Zeebrugge to Purfleet

 

[HayLouise]

Four suspects are still being questioned over the deaths of 39 people whose bodies were found inside a lorry in Essex ....

Police question four suspects over lorry deaths

Allie Hodgkins-Brown on Twitter

 

[Ched]

Journey data from the refrigerator trailer part GPS data reveals trajectory of refrigerated trailer in which migrants died


The Irish Times has established that during this time the trailer was leased by its owner, Global Trailer Rentals (GTR), to a Co

Monaghan-based haulier.

The lease document was signed by Ronan Hughes, who gave an address matching that of the haulier, C Hughes Transport.

It is understood that Mr Hughes is related to the directors of this company. Efforts to seek comment from the Hughes haulage firm, which was wound up in 2017, were unsuccessful.

 

[Fidobell]

Blame is such an odd term .... I always think ...however in any transaction there must be shared responsibility

In this case the UK is clearly responsible for dealing with the bodies with respect, and is responsible for investigating the incident to try to determine what has actually happened ... at least on UK soil.

If it turns out that policies and procedures within the UK contributed to the event, then the UK must be responsible for addressing that... Similarly the EU... and any other states along the way.

 

[Mommysleuth11]

Sorry i dont want to apper pedantic but i think the 3pm is BST (GMT starts in the early hours of tomorrow morning), 4pm is Belgian time (they are an hour ahead of us).
Info on the cobelfret website also states that trailers must be there 1.5 hours ahead of sailing, the truck didnt arrive until 1449.
Im 99% sure after cross refencing the info.

 

[Ched]

A trailer in which 39 migrants were found dead made two stops in the same area where the discovery was made after returning from a trip to Belgium in the preceding days.

It is understood that GPS data shows the refrigerated trailer made the two stops in Thurrock, close to the industrial estate at Grays in Essex where the bodies were found in the early hours of Wednesday, October 23rd. While a precise timeline is not known, the previous trip is thought to have occurred between October 17th and 22nd.

The data indicates that the trailer made two return trips between Britain and Europe in the days leading up to the discovery, the second of which culminated in the find.

The first departure is understood to have taken place from Dover, with the trailer then making stops in different Belgian towns.

It then briefly crossed into France, stopping in border regions, and then again in Dunkirk, sources said. When it returned to the UK the first time, it twice stopped in Thurrock near the Grays area.

Last voyage
Sources said the trailer was then tagged close to Purfleet, the Essex port which services Belgium, before appearing again on the continent, following a similar pattern through Belgium, into France, and back to the UK.

The final stops the trailer made before its last voyage took place near Dunkirk, before the trailer passed back into Flanders.


Its next recorded stop is on Eastern Avenue, near Grays in Essex, where the discovery of the bodies was made.

 

[Ched]

(Mo) The trucker is believed to know the man who was detained at Stansted on Friday. The arrested driver’s truck was also previously owned by the woman arrested in Warrington on Friday.
Decision on charges due for Irish truck driver in migrants’ deaths case

 

[Ched]

Me thinking out loud; so I own a refrigerated trailer , I don’t particularly do actual jobs with it as my business is the top of the process and I own assets , my business is purely to rent out my assets . In this case I’ve leased it out to Hughes , so is Hughes actually doing any work himself with my fridge trailer or does he just rent it out again (a bit like subletting) ???

“The trailer company had leased the trailer earlier this month to an Irish trucking business based close to the Border. That lease was signed by a Ronan Hughes, who gave an address matching the business address for a haulier called C Hughes Transport. Mr Hughes is understood to be a relative of the company’s directors.“

 

[Mrs Marple]

Updated TL
Sunday 20th October

Cab enters Holyhead Wales, time unknown

Tuesday 22nd October

Cab reportedly seen on Eastern Avenue Grays, time unconfirmed

BELGIAN TIME

2.49pm container arrives at Zebrugge port

4pm - ferry departs

Wednesday 23rd October

BST

12.30am boat docks at Purfleet, Essex

1.05am Trailer collected from Purfleet

1.10am truck caught on CCTV on the industrial estate

Call made requesting an ambulance by an unknown person, time unknown

01.38am Phone call to the emergency services, made by the ambulance crew

(Unsure of exact time) Driver arrested in suspicion of murder

17:47 CCTV emerges

24 October 2019:

10:35am Driver remains in custody

12:02pm Officers confirmed a young woman - initially referred to as a teenager - is among the dead.

Eight of the dead are women and 31 are men.

2:40pm Police have now confirmed they have secured a warrant of further detention from magistrates to continue questioning driver for an extra 24 hours.

3:32pm The first eight bodies from the container are set to be moved to a mortuary later on today.

38 year old man and 38 year old woman arrested in Warrington on suspicion of manslaughter and people trafficking

Friday 25th October

48 year old man from NI arrested at Standsted Airport on suspicion of manslaughter and people trafficking

Timeline of trailer movement:

1. Sources say the GPS data shows it left Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland on 15 October before crossing over to Northern Ireland and then returning south to Dublin
2. From Dublin, it crossed over to Holyhead in Wales overnight on 16 October
3. That evening, it travelled to continental Europe from Dover to Calais in France
4. Between 17 and 22 October, it moved between various cities in Belgium and France, including Dunkirk, Bruges and Lille
5. On 22 October, it made its final crossing from Zeebrugge to Purfleet

 

[HayLouise]

26 October 2019:


Police hunt fifth suspect after 39 found dead in trailer

Police have launched a manhunt for the driver who delivered the trailer to the Belgian port where it started its journey to the United Kingdom.

In a statement on Saturday morning, officers from the Belgian prosecutor's office confirmed the were "trying to identify the driver".

Authorities there also said they are working to "track the route of the container" and find anyone responsible for "collaborating with the transport".

Police hunt fifth suspect after 39 found dead in trailer

 

[HayLouise]

26 October 2019:

(video at link)

Vietnam priest: 'The whole country is in sorrow'

 

[RachelZachary]

(Mo) The trucker is believed to know the man who was detained at Stansted on Friday.
Decision on charges due for Irish truck driver in migrants’ deaths case

So we can presume that this man owns the truck and leases it to Mo or he sold the truck to Mo. This would fit with the Maher’s claim to have sold it to someone in Mo’s area.

But I guess he could also be the one who arranged the ‘job’. Has he voluntarily come to Stansted to meet police? Or was he trying to escape to somewhere else via Stansted?

 

[HayLouise]

26 October 2019:


Essex lorry deaths: Victims believed to be from rural Vietnamese town, says priest

Father Anthony Dang Huu Nam says his town is "covered in sorrow" and he is liaising with suspected victims' families.

[...]

He told Reuters news agency the tragic discovery was a "catastrophe" for his community.

"The whole district is covered in sorrow," he said. "I'm still collecting contact details for all the victims' families, and will hold a ceremony to pray for them tonight."

Essex lorry deaths: Victims believed to be from rural Vietnamese town, says priest

 

[HayLouise]

26 October 2019


Wife's tears for husband 'who died in Essex lorry container' after paying £11,000

A priest in Vietnam's Nghe An province has said people are 'covered in sorrow' amidst fears that their family members have lost their lives while on the way to the UK

[...]


The dad had been working illegally in Romania and Germany before he lost his job.

The blow led him to ask his wife Hoang Thi Thuong to help raise £11,000 to cover the cost of an illicit trip from Germany to the United Kingdom where he hoped to find work.

"I lost contact with him on October 21," his devastated wife old Reuters.

"I have a big debt to pay, no hope, and no energy to do anything".

Wife's tears for husband 'who died in Essex lorry container' after paying £11K

 

[Ched]

So we can presume that this man owns the truck and leases it to Mo or he sold the truck to Mo. This would fit with the Maher’s claim to have sold it to someone in Mo’s area.

But I guess he could also be the one who arranged the ‘job’. Has he voluntarily come to Stansted to meet police? Or was he trying to escape to somewhere else via Stansted?

the article doesn’t read well I don’t think we know the stanstead man is a trucker and I think it just reads what we know mos truck was owned by the couple (not the unnamed man)

 

[Fidobell]

My lorry driving other half just in from work heres his opinions FWIW
, he is suspicious of MR driving solo from holyhead to purfleet and then parking up for 12 hrs . As a self employed driver he only makes money when hes got a trailer on , all that dead millage , wasted fuel .
Hes also said when the unit was on the ferry , the workers would see it was a sealed fridge unit and it would be connected up to an electric hook up to keep it cold. He said the refrigeration temp must have been on for a long time as it takes 2/3 hours to reach temp