Essex lorry deaths: Old Bailey jury retires to consider verdicts

The migrants were found dead in a lorry container in October 2019

The jury in the trial of four men accused of being part of a plot linked to 39 migrants found dead in a trailer have retired to consider verdicts.

The Vietnamese nationals, aged 15 to 44, suffocated in the sealed trailer en route from Zeebrugge to Purfleet in Essex in October 2019, the jury heard.

At the Old Bailey, lorry driver Eamonn Harrison, 23, and Gheorghe Nica, 43, deny manslaughter.

Two other men are accused of being part of a wider people-smuggling conspiracy.

Irish haulier boss Ronan Hughes, 41, and lorry driver Maurice Robinson, 26, have previously admitted manslaughter.

Pham Thi Tra My, 26, and Nguyen Dinh Luong, 20, were among those who died

Prosecutors have said the container became a "tomb" with temperatures in the unit reaching an "unbearable" 38.5C (101F) as the Vietnamese nationals were sealed inside for at least 12 hours.

The court has heard Mr Harrison towed the trailer to the Belgian port, from where it was transported to Purfleet.

Mr Robinson collected the trailer when it arrived just after midnight on 23 October. When the trailer was opened the victims were discovered inside, jurors have been told.

Mr Harrison told the court he did not know there were people in the trailer.

Mr Nica, 41, of Basildon, Essex, has admitted people smuggling but denies a charge relating to the fatal trip.

He and Mr Harrison, of County Down, have denied 39 counts of manslaughter.

Mr Harrison, Christopher Kennedy, 24, of County Armagh, and Valentin Calota, 38, of Birmingham, deny being part of the people-smuggling plot.

The case continues.

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