In the latest of several trials in Europe over migrant lorry deaths, France is set to try 19 men, allegedly accused of a people-smuggling plot that led to the killings of 39 Vietnamese migrants in the back of a lorry in the year 2019, a source close to the matter said on Wednesday.

The migrants succumbed to suffocation and lost their lives while being transported across the Channel to Britain in refrigerated containers.

The youngest victims who died in the tragedy were two 15-year-old boys.

The bodies of the deceased were found at a port near London, wrapped inside a sealed unit in October 2019.

On Tuesday, the French magistrates investigating the incident, ordered the trial of 19 alleged suspects, aged between 21 to 58 over the tragedy, said the source.

The source further added that the global probe indicates that the suspects, majorly of Vietnamese, French, Chinese, Algerian and Moroccan origin, are part of a large network that smuggles people from Vietnam to Europe.

As per the source, the suspects are accused of organising transport facilities for the migrants, driving taxis or arranging accommodation, and owning properties where they could hide them in the Paris region.

As per AFP reports, the wiretapped phone calls revealed that the suspects referred to their victims as "merchandise" or even "chickens".

These men will be on trial for facilitating the illegal entry of migrants, for enabling the stay of foreigners on French territory and collaborating together with a view to committing crimes which could land them in prison for up to 10 years, said the source.

Four will also be judged for manslaughter for failing to ensure duty of care during the smuggling operation, which could lead to three-year imprisonment.

<h2>Migrants willing to risk lives to reach UK</h2>

The cross-border investigation unveiled that migrants, before being driven to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge to cross the Channel, were loaded into a truck in northern France.

The incident highlighted how the migrants are willing to risk their lives to reach the United Kingdom.&nbsp;

The probe also revealed that some people pay around $40,000 to go on the perilous journey.&nbsp;

Post-mortem tests found the victims died from lack of oxygen and overheating.

<h2>'Illegal migrants to be detained and deported,'&nbsp;says Sunak</h2>

Earlier this year, UK PM Rishi Sunak vowed to resolve the issue of illegal migrants as the country recorded the arrival of more than 45,000 migrants to the shores on small boats.

As per the draft law, anyone who will arrive in the UK illegally, will not be allowed to claim asylum, Sunak said at a news conference.

"If you come here illegally, you can't claim asylum. You can't benefit from our modern slavery protections. You can't make spurious human rights claims and you can't stay," he added.

"We will detain those who come here illegally and then remove them in weeks, either to their own country if it is safe to do so. Or to a Safe Third Country like Rwanda and once you are removed, you will be banned as you are in America and Australia from ever re-entering our country," he stated.

"The current situation is neither moral nor sustainable. It cannot go on. And it's devastatingly unfair on those who most need our help, but can't get it as our asylum system is being overwhelmed by those travelling illegally across the channel," Sunak said.

In the parliament, Right-winger Braverman said that she was "confident that this bill is compatible with international obligations", despite earlier accepting that it "pushed the boundaries of international law".&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

&nbsp;

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In the latest of several trials in Europe over migrant lorry deaths, France is set to try 19 men, allegedly accused of a people-smuggling plot that led to the killings of 39 Vietnamese migrants in the back of a lorry in the year 2019, a source close to the matter said on Wednesday.

In the latest of several trials in Europe over migrant lorry deaths, France is set to try 19 men, allegedly accused of a people-smuggling plot that led to the killings of 39 Vietnamese migrants in the back of a lorry in the year 2019, a source close to the matter said on Wednesday. The migrants succumbed to suffocation and lost their lives while being transported across the Channel to Britain in refrigerated containers. The youngest victims who died in the tragedy were two 15-year-old boys. The bodies of the deceased were found at a port near London, wrapped inside a sealed unit in October 2019. On Tuesday, the French magistrates investigating the incident, ordered the trial of 19 alleged suspects, aged between 21 to 58 over the tragedy, said the source. The source further added that the global probe indicates that the suspects, majorly of Vietnamese, French, Chinese, Algerian and Moroccan origin, are part of a large network that smuggles people from Vietnam to Europe. As per the source, the suspects are accused of organising transport facilities for the migrants, driving taxis or arranging accommodation, and owning properties where they could hide them in the Paris region. As per AFP reports, the wiretapped phone calls revealed that the suspects referred to their victims as "merchandise" or even "chickens". These men will be on trial for facilitating the illegal entry of migrants, for enabling the stay of foreigners on French territory and collaborating together with a view to committing crimes which could land them in prison for up to 10 years, said the source. Four will also be judged for manslaughter for failing to ensure duty of care during the smuggling operation, which could lead to three-year imprisonment. Migrants willing to risk lives to reach UK The cross-border investigation unveiled that migrants, before being driven to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge to cross the Channel, were loaded into a truck in northern France. The incident highlighted how the migrants are willing to risk their lives to reach the United Kingdom. The probe also revealed that some people pay around $40,000 to go on the perilous journey. Post-mortem tests found the victims died from lack of oxygen and overheating. 'Illegal migrants to be detained and deported,' says Sunak Earlier this year, UK PM Rishi Sunak vowed to resolve the issue of illegal migrants as the country recorded the arrival of more than 45,000 migrants to the shores on small boats. As per the draft law, anyone who will arrive in the UK illegally, will not be allowed to claim asylum, Sunak said at a news conference. "If you come here illegally, you can't claim asylum. You can't benefit from our modern slavery protections. You can't make spurious human rights claims and you can't stay," he added. "We will detain those who come here illegally and then remove them in weeks, either to their own country if it is safe to do so. Or to a Safe Third Country like Rwanda and once you are removed, you will be banned as you are in America and Australia from ever re-entering our country," he stated. "The current situation is neither moral nor sustainable. It cannot go on. And it's devastatingly unfair on those who most need our help, but can't get it as our asylum system is being overwhelmed by those travelling illegally across the channel," Sunak said. In the parliament, Right-winger Braverman said that she was "confident that this bill is compatible with international obligations", despite earlier accepting that it "pushed the boundaries of international law". (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE

France orders trial of suspects over 2019 migrant lorry deaths

Two members of an alleged people-smuggling gang stood trial on Wednesday accused of being responsible for the deaths of 39 Vietnamese men, women and boys found suffocated in a stifling, airtight shipping container near London last year.

The victims, nine of whom were teenagers and two aged just 15, were discovered last October in a container at the back of a truck on an industrial estate in Grays, about 20 miles (32 km) east of the British capital - a shocking incident which shone a light on global people smuggling.

Prosecutor William Emlyn Jones said the dead had been sealed inside a refrigeration unit, which was not turned on, in pitch black for at least 12 hours as the temperature rose to an unbearable 38.5 Celsius (101.3 F).

"What it must have been like inside that lorry does not bear thinking about," he said. "In short, they suffocated. There were no survivors."

He said an unsent text message on the phone of one dead woman, Pham Thi Ngoc Oanh, 28, read: "Maybe going to die in the container, can't breathe any more, dear."

An Irish haulage boss, Ronan Hughes, 41, and Maurice Robinson, 26, from Northern Ireland, the driver of the truck, have already pleaded guilty to manslaughter. On Wednesday, four other men accused of being part of the people-smuggling ring went on trial at London's Old Bailey court.

British-Romanian dual national Gheorghe Nica, 43, and Eamonn Harrison, 23, from Northern Ireland, deny manslaughter, while Harrison, Christopher Kennedy, 24, and Valentin Calota, 37, deny conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration.

Nica admitted that offence earlier on Wednesday, but denies any involvement in the fatal incident.

The Vietnamese migrants' journey began in northern Europe on Oct. 22 when the container was driven by Harrison to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge where it was loaded onto a cargo ship for England, Emlyn Jones said.

Shortly after midnight on Oct. 23 at the English port of Purfleet, it was picked up by Robinson. He stopped almost immediately after being sent a message by his boss which said: "Give them air quickly, but don’t let them out".

"What he found must haunt him still," Emlyn Jones told the court. "For the 39 men and women inside, that trailer had become their tomb."

HUGE SUMS

The prosecutor said there were huge sums to be made from people smuggling, with people paying upwards of 10,000 pounds ($12,887.00) to cross the English Channel in the back of a truck.

He said the gang had successfully brought in truckloads of migrants previously, with Nica organising their dispersal and Calota one of their drivers. In May 2018, Harrison was stopped at Coquelles in northern France with 18 Vietnamese nationals hidden in his truck. He was given a fine, but never paid it.

On this occasion, however, Emlyn Jones said something "went dreadfully wrong". Truck driver Kennedy, who was not involved in the fatal trip, texted a friend on the morning the bodies were found, saying: "Must have been too many and run out of air".

Most of the 39 victims - 28 men, eight women and three boys aged between 15 and 44 - were from Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces in north-central Vietnam, where poor job prospects and other factors spur migration.

Last month, a court in Vietnam sentenced four Vietnamese people to between 2-1/2 and 7-1/2 years in prison for their role in the deaths. Police said the defendants had arranged for one of the women to travel illegally to France and then to Britain for $22,000.

The trial at London's Central Court is expected to last about six weeks.

Two members of an alleged people-smuggling gang stood trial on Wednesday accused of being responsible for the deaths of 39 Vietnamese men, women and boys found suffocated in a stifling, airtight shipping container near London last year.

Two members of an alleged people-smuggling gang stood trial on Wednesday accused of being responsible for the deaths of 39 Vietnamese men, women and boys found suffocated in a stifling, airtight shipping container near London last year. The victims, nine of whom were teenagers and two aged just 15, were discovered last October in a container at the back of a truck on an industrial estate in Grays, about 20 miles (32 km) east of the British capital - a shocking incident which shone a light on global people smuggling. Prosecutor William Emlyn Jones said the dead had been sealed inside a refrigeration unit, which was not turned on, in pitch black for at least 12 hours as the temperature rose to an unbearable 38.5 Celsius (101.3 F). "What it must have been like inside that lorry does not bear thinking about," he said. "In short, they suffocated. There were no survivors." He said an unsent text message on the phone of one dead woman, Pham Thi Ngoc Oanh, 28, read: "Maybe going to die in the container, can't breathe any more, dear." An Irish haulage boss, Ronan Hughes, 41, and Maurice Robinson, 26, from Northern Ireland, the driver of the truck, have already pleaded guilty to manslaughter. On Wednesday, four other men accused of being part of the people-smuggling ring went on trial at London's Old Bailey court. British-Romanian dual national Gheorghe Nica, 43, and Eamonn Harrison, 23, from Northern Ireland, deny manslaughter, while Harrison, Christopher Kennedy, 24, and Valentin Calota, 37, deny conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration. Nica admitted that offence earlier on Wednesday, but denies any involvement in the fatal incident. The Vietnamese migrants' journey began in northern Europe on Oct. 22 when the container was driven by Harrison to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge where it was loaded onto a cargo ship for England, Emlyn Jones said. Shortly after midnight on Oct. 23 at the English port of Purfleet, it was picked up by Robinson. He stopped almost immediately after being sent a message by his boss which said: "Give them air quickly, but don’t let them out". "What he found must haunt him still," Emlyn Jones told the court. "For the 39 men and women inside, that trailer had become their tomb." HUGE SUMS The prosecutor said there were huge sums to be made from people smuggling, with people paying upwards of 10,000 pounds ($12,887.00) to cross the English Channel in the back of a truck. He said the gang had successfully brought in truckloads of migrants previously, with Nica organising their dispersal and Calota one of their drivers. In May 2018, Harrison was stopped at Coquelles in northern France with 18 Vietnamese nationals hidden in his truck. He was given a fine, but never paid it. On this occasion, however, Emlyn Jones said something "went dreadfully wrong". Truck driver Kennedy, who was not involved in the fatal trip, texted a friend on the morning the bodies were found, saying: "Must have been too many and run out of air". Most of the 39 victims - 28 men, eight women and three boys aged between 15 and 44 - were from Nghe An and Ha Tinh provinces in north-central Vietnam, where poor job prospects and other factors spur migration. Last month, a court in Vietnam sentenced four Vietnamese people to between 2-1/2 and 7-1/2 years in prison for their role in the deaths. Police said the defendants had arranged for one of the women to travel illegally to France and then to Britain for $22,000. The trial at London's Central Court is expected to last about six weeks.

Four men on trial over death of 39 Vietnamese migrants in UK truck container

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