Essex lorry deaths: Teenager escaped Dutch asylum centre

The bodies were discovered in a lorry trailer in the early hours of 23 October

One of the teenagers among 39 people found dead in a refrigerated lorry in Essex had gone missing from an asylum centre in the Netherlands, it has emerged.

Ten teenagers, including two 15-year-old boys, were among the Vietnamese victims found in the trailer in an industrial park in Grays on 23 October.

The Dutch government confirmed the minor had been at one of its centres.

Five people have so far been arrested in connection with the deaths.

The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA), which is responsible for the reception, supervision and departure (from the reception centre) of asylum seekers, refused to give any further details, including the name or age of the teenager.

Earlier this month the names of all 39 Vietnamese nationals who were found in the lorry were released by police.

Ten teenagers, including two 15-year-old boys, were among the victims.

Pham Thi Tra My, 26, and Nguyen Dinh Luong, 20, were among the victims

Bui Thi Nhung, 19, from Nghe An province, was also found dead in the lorry

The bodies were found on the Waterglade Industrial Estate in a container which had been shipped to nearby Purfleet from Zeebrugge in Belgium.

Lorry driver Maurice Robinson, 25, from Northern Ireland, has been charged with offences including 39 counts of manslaughter.

He will next appear at the Old Bailey in London on Monday.