Police in Vietnam arrest eight over Essex lorry deaths
Police in Vietnam have arrested eight people in connection with the discovery of 39 dead Vietnamese in a lorry in Essex last month, state media said today.
UK police charged two men with manslaughter last month over the deaths of the group whose bodies were found in a container on a lorry in Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays.
Read more: Man faces Dublin court in connection with 39 deaths
“Based on what we learn from the suspects, we will actively launch investigations to fight and eradicate these rings which bring people illegally to Britain,” said Nghe An province police chief Nguyen Huu Cau, according to the official Vietnam News Agency (VNA).
“The best thing to do now is to deal with the consequences of the incident and help family members receive the bodies,” Cau added.
Most of the victims were from the neighbouring provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh, in north-central Vietnam, where poor job prospects, encouragement by authorities, smuggling gangs and environmental disaster all contribute migration.
Read more: Police begin contacting victims’ families with all 39 believed to be Vietnamese
On Friday, police in Ha Tinh said they had arrested two people and summoned others for questioning on suspicion of involvement in the incident.
UK police have charged alleged lorry driver Maurice “Mo” Robinson, 25, from Northern Ireland, with manslaughter and on Friday Eamon Harrison, 23, from Northern Ireland, was also accused of 39 counts of manslaughter as well as human trafficking and immigration offences.
On Sunday, a delegation of Vietnamese diplomats and police left for Britain where they were expected to meet with their British counterparts on Monday, Vietnam’s official government website said on Monday.