Oct. 26 (UPI) — British police said Saturday the driver of a truck trailer arrested as a suspect in connection with the deaths of 39 people found dead inside Wednesday has been charged with manslaughter.
Maurice Robinson, 25, of Laurel Drive, Craigavon, Northern Ireland, is due to appear in court Monday on charges of 39 counts of manslaughter, conspiracy to traffic people, and conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and money laundering, an Essex police update said Saturday.
He was arrested as a suspect after the dead bodies were discovered in the truck container in Waterglade Industrial Park Wednesday.
Investigators said Thursday all bodies were believed to be of Chinese nationals. Among them, one was a young adult woman, and 38 were adults. Eight of the dead were women and 31 were men.
“Three other people have been arrested in connection with this investigation,” the update said, including a 38 year-old man and a 38-year-old woman from Warrington and a 48-year-old man from Northern Ireland. They remain in custody on suspicion of human trafficking conspiracy and manslaughter.
Essex police said the trailer arrived in Britain from Zeebrugge port city in Belgium, and the journey started in Northern Ireland.
The National Crime Agency has begun investigating ties to organized crime and raided three homes Wednesday.
