Detectives name two suspects they are hunting over manslaughter and human trafficking after deaths of 39 stowaways in Essex lorry container
Detectives investigating the deaths of 39 people in a lorry in Essex are hunting two new suspects.
Police say they want to speak to Ronan Hughes, 40, and his brother Christopher, 34, both from Armagh, on suspicion of manslaughter and human trafficking.
It has previously been reported that the man who leased the container in which the 39 people died gave his name to the trailer’s owners as Ronan Hughes.
Police investigating the deaths of 39 people in a container in Essex are hunting these men
The investigation was launched after 39 people were found dead in this lorry in Essex last week
The address reportedly given on the lease document by ‘Ronan Hughes’ is said to match that of haulier C Hughes Transport.
C Hughes Transport was dissolved in 2017 but a C Hughes Logistics lists its business address as a post box along a farm track in County Monaghan on the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
A Ronan Hughes lives a short distance away, just over the border in the Irish Republic.
When MailOnline visited his home on Friday, Mr Hughes was unavailable for comment. However, a lorry with C Hughes insignia was parked in a yard near his home.
MailOnline has visited the address reportedly given on the lease document for the container by a ‘Ronan Hughes’. Those at the address declined to comment
Detective Chief Superintendent Stuart Hooper, who is leading the investigation, said: ‘Finding and speaking to the Hughes brothers is crucial to our investigation.
‘At this time we believe they are in Northern Ireland but they also have links to the Irish Republic.
‘If you know where they are or have any information about their whereabouts I need you to call my team.’
The Irish Times has reported that the trailer made an earlier stop in the same area where the bodies were found after returning from a trip to Belgium.
It is understood that GPS data shows the refrigerated trailer made a stop in Thurrock in Essex, some time between October 17 and 22, close to the industrial estate where the grim discovery was made in the early hours of October 23.