A person of interest in the deaths of 39 migrants inside a lorry trailer in Essex, England has reportedly received "serious" threats on his life. Essex Police are now looking into the alleged death threats that could have links to a suspected people-smuggling ring.
An insider told the Irish Sunday Mirror that the police handed out a formal police warning last week as the authorities continue to look into the potential involvement of a human trafficking gang in the smuggling of the dead migrants found inside a lorry trailer late last month.
"We are talking about a multi-million euro people-smuggling ring so officers are taking these threats very seriously," the source revealed. It is unclear whether the person of interest is related to the smuggling ring in question.
Two drivers have already been named in relation to the Essex lorry tragedy. Maurice "Mo" Robinson, is said to have picked up the trailer in Zeebrugge. He has been charged with multiple crimes, including 39 counts of manslaughter.
Another driver, Eamonn Harrison, is under extradition proceedings as he is believed to have delivered the trailer to Zeebrugge, where Robinson later picked it up. Should the proceedings be approved, Harrison will be extradited from Northern Ireland to the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, Essex Police are also in search of two brothers, Ronan and Christopher Hughes as they are wanted for questioning. The brothers have been hiding since they were mentioned by the authorities as persons of interest in the case.
However, a security source told The Telegraph that the Hughes siblings are running, not from the Essex Police, but from senior gang members who wanted to speak to them before they surrendered to the authorities.
The Hughes brothers have yet to be questioned if they are directly involved with the smuggling ring suspected of luring migrants in search of a better life in the U.K.
Police Detective Chief Inspector Daniel Stoten appealed to the brothers on Friday to turn themselves into the Police Service of Northern Ireland as their statements will be crucial to the investigations on the Essex lorry tragedy.
In Vietnam, local police believe they have identified the kingpin involved in the smuggling of the 39 migrants believed to be all of the Vietnamese descent. According to the Mirror, a special task force has been sent out in search of Mr. Truong.
Authorities in towns where around 24 of the dead migrants hail from originally are suspecting that Mr. Truong is the regional head of a "global ring" that smuggles people from other countries to the U.K.
