Northern Ireland

Co Down man Eamonn Harrison one of two men convicted of manslaughter of 39 mirants found in a trailer

DCI Daniel Stoten from Essex Police reacts to the verdict. Picture vy Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire
DCI Daniel Stoten from Essex Police reacts to the verdict. Picture vy Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire DCI Daniel Stoten from Essex Police reacts to the verdict. Picture vy Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

A MAN from Co Down, who was a member of a million-pound people-smuggling ring, could be facing life behind bars after being convicted of the manslaughter of 39 migrants.

The Vietnamese migrants, aged between 15 and 44, were found dead in the back of a trailer in Essex on October 23 last year.

Lorry driver Eamonn Harrison (24) from Newry, was one of two men found guilty today after a ten week trial along with Romanian ringleader Gheorghe Nica (43) from Basildon.

Another man, Christopher Kennedy (24) from Keady, Co Armagh was found guilty of conspiracy along with Valentin Calota (38) from Birmingham.

The verdicts bring the total number of people convicted in Britain to eight, including haulier boss Ronan Hughes (41) of Armagh, and 26-year-old lorry driver Maurice Robinson, of Craigavon, who admitted manslaughter.

Prosecutors are considering charges against a further three people.

The maximum sentence for people-smuggling is 14 years in prison with manslaughter carrying a possible life sentence.

Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Stoten, of Essex Police, said the gang were "greedy" but "complacent".

He said: "You would not transport animals in that way but they were quite happy to do that and put them at significant risk."

The Old Bailey heard how the gang offered a "VIP" service to Vietnamese migrants, who gathered in Belgium and France.

They charged about £13,000 a head to transport migrants in a trailer via the Channel Tunnel or by boat to Essex.

The network, led by Nica and and Hughes, had been operating for at least 18 months, despite repeatedly coming to the attention of authorities.

In May 2018, Harrison, the "man on the Continent", was fined after being caught at the Channel Tunnel with 18 Vietnamese migrants in his trailer.

On October 11 last year, 15 people were shipped in a container dropped at Zeebrugge by Harrison and collected by Kennedy at Purfleet.

They then boarded a fleet of vehicles at Orsett for transfer to Dulwich where they were held by a Vietnamese man named Phong, whose job was to take payment, jurors heard.

Orsett resident Marie Andrews had witnessed the drop and rang police to report her concerns three times that day.

Three days later, Kennedy was stopped by French border agents at the Channel Tunnel.

He was sent on his way after 20 migrants were removed from his trailer, two of whom were among the dead on October 23.

On October 17 last year, Harrison took 15 migrants and a load of macaroons and Bakewell tarts to Zeebrugge.

That night, Nica was caught on CCTV with Hughes at a hotel in Essex carrying a bag containing £50,000, which he had allegedly collected from Phong.

Lorry driver Eamonn Harrison was convicted of manslaughter
Lorry driver Eamonn Harrison was convicted of manslaughter Lorry driver Eamonn Harrison was convicted of manslaughter

On the morning of October 22, Harrison picked up 39 migrants from Bierne in France.

His trailer was loaded on to the Clementine ship which departed from Zeebrugge at about 4pm, docking at Purfleet shortly after midnight.

Robinson, who collected the trailer at 1.08am, was instructed by Hughes via Snapchat to "give them air quickly don't let them out".

When he opened the doors, a plume of vapour escaped and Robinson stood for 90 seconds.

In the 23 minutes before he dialled 999, Robinson exchanged panicked calls with his boss Hughes and Nica.

The first police officer on the scene described finding half-naked bodies "closely packed" together lying in the trailer, some "frothing at the mouth".

Mobile phones recovered showed how they had tried to raise the alarm and left goodbye messages for loved ones as they ran out of air.

Others had used a metal pole to try to punch a hole through the roof or attract attention.

Kennedy, Harrison and Calota, who picked up migrants at Orsett on October 18, variously claimed they had thought they were transporting cigarettes, alcohol and stolen lorry parts.

Nica admitted being roped in by convicted cigarette smuggler Hughes for earlier runs, but said he thought Robinson had a load of cigarettes when he showed him where he could unload in Orsett the night before the tragedy.

But prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones told jurors the operation required "meticulous" planning and each defendant had to be "in the know".

The defendants did not react in the dock as the verdicts were given, with Harrison and Calota convicted by a majority of 10 to one.

Mr Justice Sweeney adjourned sentencing of all the defendants to January 7, 8 and 11.

He thanked the jury, saying: "This is not normal times and this has been anything but a normal case."

Christopher Kennedy
Christopher Kennedy Christopher Kennedy