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Essex lorry deaths: What we know Essex lorry deaths: What we know
(about 13 hours later)
The bodies of 39 people, believed to be Chinese nationals, have been found in a lorry trailer in Essex in eastern England. The bodies of 39 people, believed by police to be Chinese nationals, were found in a lorry trailer in Essex in eastern England on 23 October.
The driver has been arrested and a murder investigation has been launched.The driver has been arrested and a murder investigation has been launched.
Essex Police said they were working "to piece together the circumstances of this horrific event", which they say is the largest murder investigation in the force's history. Essex Police said they were working "to piece together the circumstances of this horrific event" - the largest murder investigation in the force's history.
Here's what we know so far about the discovery.Here's what we know so far about the discovery.
Who were the victims?Who were the victims?
Essex police said in a statement they believed all 39 victims - eight women and 31 men - to be Chinese nationals.Essex police said in a statement they believed all 39 victims - eight women and 31 men - to be Chinese nationals.
All were thought to be adults except one "young adult" woman, who police previously said may have been a teenager.All were thought to be adults except one "young adult" woman, who police previously said may have been a teenager.
The police said they had received first reports about bodies found in a lorry at the Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays just before 01:40 local time (00:40 GMT) on Wednesday. The town is about 15km (nine miles) east of London. The police said they had received the first reports about bodies found in a lorry at the Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays just before 01:40 local time (00:40 GMT) on Wednesday. The town is about 15km (nine miles) east of London.
The bodies were discovered by ambulance staff, and the police later said that "sadly all 39 people inside the container had died". The bodies were discovered by ambulance staff.
Police began the process of moving the bodies on Thursday. Eleven victims were taken by private ambulance from the Port of Tilbury to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford.Police began the process of moving the bodies on Thursday. Eleven victims were taken by private ambulance from the Port of Tilbury to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford.
All of the dead will undergo a coroner's examination to establish the cause of death.All of the dead will undergo a coroner's examination to establish the cause of death.
Police will then attempt to identify each individual, but have warned this will be a "substantial operation" and they cannot estimate how long it will take.Police will then attempt to identify each individual, but have warned this will be a "substantial operation" and they cannot estimate how long it will take.
What has Chinese reaction been so far?What has Chinese reaction been so far?
BBC Monitoring says the overriding reaction in China is one of shock. Liu Xiaoming, the Chinese ambassador to the UK, tweeted on Thursday that officials had read the news with a "heavy heart" and sent a team to Essex to meet police.
However, the only official comments have so far come from the Chinese embassy in London, which said on Wednesday its staff were "driving to the scene to verify the situation". But he cautioned that the nationalities of the dead had still not been confirmed.
Given China has only just become aware of the update that the bodies may be Chinese nationals, the scale of reaction has been huge, BBC Monitoring says. On Friday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said it hoped British authorities could quickly find out what had happened and "severely punish criminals involved in the case".
Already, more than 100,000 users of the popular Sina Weibo microblog have used the hastag #39BodiesInBritishTruckWereChineseNationals. The overriding reaction on Chinese social media is one of shock.
The overriding sentiment from users is shock, given that no known similar incident has taken place in over a decade, and no-one is aware of a large group of Chinese nationals being unaccounted for. On Thursday, more than 100,000 users of the popular Sina Weibo microblog used the hashtag #39BodiesInBritishTruckWereChineseNationals.
The last known similar incident took place in June 2000, when the bodies of 58 Chinese people were found in a lorry in the English port of Dover. There were two survivors. Users pointed out that no similar incident involving Chinese nationals had occurred in many years and that there had been no reports of a large group of Chinese citizens being unaccounted for.
In June 2000, the bodies of 58 Chinese people were found suffocated to death in a lorry at the English port of Dover. There were two survivors.
What about the lorry and the trailer?What about the lorry and the trailer?
Essex Police said the tractor unit (the front part of the lorry) had entered the UK via Holyhead - an Irish Sea port in Wales - on Sunday 20 October, having travelled over from Dublin, the Republic of Ireland. GPS data shows the refrigerated container trailer crossed back and forth between the UK and Europe in the days before it was found.
They corrected a previous statement which stated that this had taken police on the 19 October. It was leased from the company Global Trailer Rentals on 15 October. The company said it was "entirely unaware that the trailer was to be used in the manner in which it appears to have been".
The unit had stickers on the windscreen saying "Ireland" and "The Ultimate Dream". 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.
Police believe the tractor unit then collected the trailer, which arrived in Purfleet on the River Thames from Zeebrugge, Belgium, at about 00:30 local time on Wednesday. From Dublin, it crossed over to Wales overnight on 16 October and travelled to continental Europe that evening, from Dover to Calais in France.
The cab and trailer then left the port shortly after 01:05. Police were called to the industrial park where the bodies were discovered shortly before 01:40. Between 17 and 22 October, it moved between various cities in Belgium and France, including Dunkirk, Bruges and Lille, before making its final crossing from Zeebrugge to Purfleet.
Officials in Belgium are investigating how long the trailer spent there before travelling to the UK. Essex Police said the tractor unit (the front part of the lorry) had entered the UK via Holyhead - an Irish Sea port in Wales - on Sunday 20 October, having travelled over from Dublin.
On Thursday, Global Trailer Rentals, a Dublin-based company, confirmed it owned the refrigerated trailer in which the bodies were found, according to the Irish Broadcaster RTE. Police believe the tractor unit collected the trailer in Purfleet on the River Thames and left the port shortly after 01:05 on Thursday. Police were called to the industrial park where the bodies were discovered about half an hour later.
Global Trailer Rentals said the trailer had been leased on the 15 October from its yard in County Monaghan. Temperatures in refrigerated units can be as low as -25C (-13F). The lorry now is at a secure site in Essex.
In a statement, the company added that it was "entirely unaware that the trailer was to be used in the manner in which it appears to have been". Early reports had suggested the lorry may have arrived from Bulgaria but its government has since clarified that while the tractor unit was registered there in 2017 it had not entered the country since.
Richard Burnett, chief executive of the Road Haulage Association, said the trailer appeared to be a refrigerated unit where temperatures could be as low as -25C (-13F).
The lorry now is at a secure site in Essex.
Essex police had previously said they believed the lorry was from Bulgaria.
The Bulgarian foreign ministry said: "The Scania truck was registered in Varna [on the east coast of Bulgaria] under the name of a company owned by an Irish citizen."
Bulgarian officials were also quoted as saying that the lorry was last in Bulgaria in 2017.
And the driver?And the driver?
The driver was named locally as Mo Robinson, 25, from the Portadown area of County Armagh, Northern Ireland.The driver was named locally as Mo Robinson, 25, from the Portadown area of County Armagh, Northern Ireland.
He was arrested on suspicion of murder on Wednesday.He was arrested on suspicion of murder on Wednesday.
On Thursday, police were granted an extra 24 hours to question him.On Thursday, police were granted an extra 24 hours to question him.
Three properties in Northern Ireland have been raided and the National Crime Agency is working to establish if "organised crime groups" were involved. Three properties in Northern Ireland have been raided and the National Crime Agency (NCA) is working to establish if "organised crime groups" were involved.
Was it an attempt to smuggle people into the UK?Was it an attempt to smuggle people into the UK?
We do not know at this stage, and Essex police warn that the investigation will be "lengthy and complex".We do not know at this stage, and Essex police warn that the investigation will be "lengthy and complex".
The National Crime Agency said it is trying to identify any "organised crime groups who may have played a part". The NCA said it was trying to identify any "organised crime groups who may have played a part".
The BBC's home editor Mark Easton reports that people smugglers have increasingly moved to other routes since the Calais migrant camps were shut three years ago in France and security measures were increased at Dover and the Channel Tunnel. People smugglers have increasingly moved to other routes since the Calais migrant camps in France were shut three years ago and security measures increased at Dover and the Channel Tunnel.
Mr Burnett told the BBC that ports at Calais and Coquelles use CO2 monitors, sniffer dogs and scanners to check for people smuggling. Richard Burnett, chief executive of the Road Haulage Association, said that ports at Calais and Coquelles use CO2 monitors, sniffer dogs and scanners to check for people smuggling.
"That kind of pushes the problem further out to more remote ports," he said. "If we haven't got the infrastructure there from a security perspective to check those vehicles, then traffickers will definitely use those routes to get migrants into the UK." "That kind of pushes the problem further out to more remote ports," he said.
Britain's National Crime Agency told the BBC that all UK ports were being used for people smuggling. The NCA says that all UK ports are being used for people smuggling.
More dangerous methods are being used to get human cargo through. Although hiding people in the back of a lorry remains the most common tactic, commercial shipping containers are being increasingly used, including refrigerated ones.
The most common one is still being hidden in the back of a lorry, but increasingly commercial shipping containers are being used, sometimes even refrigerated ones. Migrants pay £10,000 ($12,900) or more for a space on these vehicles and put themselves at great risk.
Risks are substantial for the migrants, who can pay £10,000 ($12,900) or more for a space on these vehicles.
A lorry is charged just over £400 for a ferry crossing from Zeebrugge to Purfleet.A lorry is charged just over £400 for a ferry crossing from Zeebrugge to Purfleet.
How many migrants have died in transit in the UK?How many migrants have died in transit in the UK?
The number of migrants who die in transit has been recorded by the UN since 2014.The number of migrants who die in transit has been recorded by the UN since 2014.
Since then, five bodies of suspected migrants have been found in lorries or containers in the UK:Since then, five bodies of suspected migrants have been found in lorries or containers in the UK:
Data was not collected in the same way before the migrant crisis began in 2014, but such deaths are not new. Data was not collected in the same way before the European migrant crisis began in 2014, but such deaths are not new.