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Essex lorry deaths: Another man arrested on suspicion of manslaughter
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Essex lorry deaths: Another man arrested on suspicion of manslaughter

THERE has been another arrest in connection to the deaths of 39 migrants found in the back of a lorry container in Essex last month.

A 36-year-old man from Purfleet, Essex was taken into custody in Dalston, east London on Monday.

He's reportedly being questioned on suspicion of conspiracy to traffic people and conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration, as well as on suspicion of manslaughter.

The arrest came just hours after Northern Irishman Mo Robinson pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to assist unlawful immigration between 1 May 2018 and 24 October 2019 at the Old Bailey.

He spoke, via video link, to confirm his identity, nationality and his guilty plea, but said nothing else. He was not asked for a plea regarding the charges of manslaughter.

People gather to watch as a lorry, in which 39 bodies were discovered in the trailer, is driven from the site to a secure location where further forensic investigation can take place

Robinson, from Co. Armagh, was the driver of the lorry in question and is believed to have contacted police after discovering that the 39 migrants, all from Vietnam, had died in the back of his lorry during transit.

Of the 39 migrants, eight were women and two were 15-year-old boys.

Another man, Christopher Kennedy, of Darkley, County Armagh, appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates' Court on Monday charged with human trafficking offences, though no pleas have been entered as of yet.

Meanwhile, Eamonn Harrison, 22, from Mayobridge, Northern Ireland, is in custody in Dublin and is awaiting extradition to the UK after a European Arrest Warrant was issued.

Brothers Ronan and Christopher Hughes, from Co. Armagh, are still wanted by police on suspicion of human trafficking and manslaughter and are believed to be on the run somewhere on the island of Ireland, while three others have been arrested in connection with the incident, but have since been released on bail.