39 Dead Bodies Found in Semi Truck, Driver Arrested
The bodies of 39 people were found in the back of a semi-truck in Essex east of London in the United Kingdom early Wednesday morning.
Essex police said the truck is believed to have traveled from Bulgaria, the BBC reported.
According to authorities, everyone inside the back of the trailer was dead, including 38 adults and one teenager.
The truck driver, identified as a 25-year-old man from Northern Ireland, has been arrested under suspicion of murder.
Deputy Chief Constable Pippa Mills told reporters that identifying the victims is law enforcement’s “number one priority,” but anticipates it will be a “lengthy process.”
.@IanWoodsSky reacts to the police update on the 39 dead bodies found inside a lorry container in Essex.
He says it’s still unclear how emergency services were alerted to the incident.
Read more here: https://t.co/xxMDx28Kgi pic.twitter.com/lfGbkyvJeP
— Sky News (@SkyNews) October 23, 2019
According to the BBC, a spokesman for the Bulgarian foreign affairs minister had yet to confirm whether the truck is registered in the country.
“There is also no indication of the nationality of the human bodies found in the truck,” he said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson described the discovery as an “unimaginable tragedy and truly heartbreaking.”
Speaking before Parliament on Wednesday, he said: “I know that the thoughts and prayers of all members will be with those who lost their lives and their loved ones.
“I’m receiving regular updates. The Home Office will work closely with Essex Police as we establish exactly what has happened.”
“This is an unbelievable human tragedy that happened in our country.”@BorisJohnson and @jeremycorbyn express their condolences after 39 people were found dead inside a lorry container in Essex.
To read the full story, click here: https://t.co/oJpm4wTprr pic.twitter.com/M566H9S6og
— Sky News (@SkyNews) October 23, 2019
Member of Parliament Jackie Doyle-Price, who represents the Essex county town of Gray where the truck was discovered, said it was “sickening news.”
During Prime Minister’s Questions before the Parliament, Doyle-Price said: “To put 39 people into a locked metal container shows a contempt for human life that is evil. The best thing we can do in memory of those victims is to find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.”
The truck entered the United Kingdom from Holyhead in northern Wales via ferry from Dublin, Ireland, three days ago.
“It’s an unknown route in my experience, so it’s a surprise, as well as tragic,” Dave Wood, former director of general immigration enforcement said, according to The New York Times.
He explained that migrants seeking to enter Great Britain sometimes fly to Dublin, rather than London, because airport security is looser there.
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