Essex lorry deaths – Second driver, 22, appears in court over the deaths of 39 migrants found in back of trailer
A SECOND driver facing manslaughter charges over the deaths of 39 migrants in an Essex lorry has appeared in court today.
Eamon Harrison, 22, from Mayobridge, Co Down, appeared at the High Court in Dublin over a European Arrest Warrant to have him extradited to the UK.
He faces extradition after allegedly delivering the trailer the migrants were found in to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge before its onward journey to Britain.
All 39 of the migrants who died were from Vietnam, with their bodies found at an industrial estate in Grays last month.
Harrison will return to court in Dublin on November 21.
No application for bail was made, with objections to the arrest warrant to be submitted to court by Friday.
The warrant lists 41 offences, including 39 manslaughter charges, conspiracy to commit a human trafficking and conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration.
Cops revealed they have spoken on the phone to one of two fugitive brothers wanted for the manslaughter of the 39 migrants.
Ronan Hughes, 40, who along with brother Christopher, 34, is being hunted by police, is said to have called Essex Police after Maurice 'Mo' Robinson, 26, who was driving the lorry when the bodies were found, was arrested.
A Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) detective later called Hughes and had a conversation with him, it is understood.
MANSLAUGHTER CHARGES
A lorry thought to belong to the Hughes brothers was seized in Northern Ireland - but they weren't in it.
Detectives urged the fugitive brothers to hand themselves in after the bodies of eight women and 31 men were found in a lorry trailer.
Cops said officers seized a lorry connected to the Hughes brothers in Lisburn, near Belfast, and appealed for information from the public on the pair's whereabouts.
DCI Stoten said: "Ronan and Christopher Hughes are known to have links in Northern Ireland and Ireland as well as the road haulage and shipping industries.
"We urge anyone who has been in contact with them or has any information about where they are to get in contact with us."
A source told the Irish Mirror: "Ronan Hughes made a telephone call to police in the UK from a mobile phone shortly after 2am last Wednesday.
“He said he needed to talk to someone about Mo Robinson and claimed Robinson was legit and had nothing to with anything illegal and knew nothing about the cargo.
“Hughes confirmed he knew Robinson and pushed to get a number of questions answered. He gave his [own] date of birth and an address.
“We believe he was trying to establish how much and what information the police had at that time."
Three other people arrested in connection with the incident - two men aged 38 and 46 and a 38-year-old woman - have been released on bail.
The Hughes brothers are said to run a haulage business on the Northern Ireland border with the Republic.
Ronan Hughes is alleged to have leased the refrigerated container from another Irish company, Dublin-based Global Trailer Rentals (GTR).
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There is no suggestion the brothers were aware of the plot to smuggle migrants using the cab or the container.
Robinson appeared in court charged with manslaughter and conspiracy to traffic.
The dad-to-be is accused of being part of a global ring of people smugglers.
This article was based on announcements publicly made by the Essex Police in October and November 2019. Christopher Hughes has since denied any involvement in these deaths and the Essex Police has subsequently confirmed that no further action will be taken against him.
