LONDON (Reuters) – Four men received lengthy prison sentences on Friday for the killing of 39 Vietnamese men, women and children who drowned in a watertight, airtight container in October 2019 while being smuggled into Great Britain.
The discovery of so many dead people (two just 15 years old) in the back of the truck of an industrial estate in east London shocked Britain and Vietnam. He also highlighted the illicit world trade that sends the poor from Asia, Africa and the Middle East on dangerous journeys to the West.
When oxygen levels dropped, some tried desperately to escape, but in vain. Others used cell phones to say goodbye to devastated relatives on the other side of the world.
Judge Nigel Sweeney said they had suffered a “slow and cruel death” by imprisoning seven men involved in the smuggling gang for a total of 92 years at Old Bailey Criminal Court in London.
He said it was a sophisticated, long-lasting and cost-effective scheme that would have made up for hundreds of thousands of pounds.
The four who admitted or were found guilty of homicide and immigration offenses were 41-year-old transporter Ronan Hughes of Northern Ireland, the leader of the plot who was jailed for 20 years, and Romanian Gheorghe Nica, 44, another important figure. who was sentenced to 27 years behind bars.
Maurice Robinson, 26, a Northern Irish driver of the truck where the bodies were found, was jailed for 13 years, while Eamonn Harrison, 24, also from the British province, drove the container to the Belgian port. of Zeebrugge from where the victims were taken to Britain, received a sentence of 18 years.
Most of those who died were from Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces in north-central Vietnam, where poor job prospects, environmental disasters and the promise of economic rewards abroad fuel migration.
British police have paid tribute to relatives of the dead, including the parents of 15-year-old footballer Nguyen Huy Hung.
“He always dreamed of going to the UK and tried hard to study in school and learn English for that purpose,” they said.
Reports by Michael Holden; edited by James Davey and Angus MacSwan