Inside Vietnamese refugee camp hidden in French woods where ‘scared’ migrants take cover before £30k ‘smuggling’ into UK
HUDDLED in a makeshift tent in a muddy forest, these men are waiting for the chance at a new life.
Soon, these Vietnamese migrants hope a man will arrive to deliver on his promise – to smuggle them into England.
They have forked out £25,000 to get this far – first 6,000 miles from China into Germany, before finally being driven to France where they were left in a muddy camp in Bethune,
For now they must wait for the most risky part of the journey – to somehow get into the UK.
Speaking to the Sun on Sunday, the group of 13 revealed they were terrified to hear 39 bodies were found in a freezing container – with reports the men and women were found with bloodied hands from banging on the walls.
But they have come too far to turn around.
Duk, 18, who comes from Ha Tinh province, said: “Of course we are all scared. We have heard what happened to the other people in the trailer.
“But we have come this far and are too close to England to stop. We have to get across and some way or other we will.
“We have been here for just under a month now. A couple of weeks ago a Pakistani man came and took some of us away.
“He said he would be back but we haven’t seen him since. I’m hoping he comes soon before it gets to cold here.
“One thing is sure, I will not be going into the back of a cold trailer. It’s either in a container or a car I don’t want to end up dead.”
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR:
- The bodies of 39 migrants were found in a lorry after it was picked up from Purfleet, Essex, on October 23
- Driver Maurice ‘Mo’ Robinson has been charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, conspiracy to traffic humans, conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and money laundering
- He reportedly phoned the emergency services 20 minutes after he picked up the lorry
- He will appear at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on October 28
- Cheshire couple Thomas and Joanna Maher – who allegedly once owned the lorry – were questioned on suspicion of manslaughter and conspiracy to traffic people but were released on bail
- A 45-year-old man from Northern Ireland was also released on bail until November 13
- Migrants in Zeebrugge have vowed they will keep trying to get into the UK despite the danger
Now they are waiting for the gang master, a Pakistani man, who will arrive unannounced and take them to a mystery rendezvous for the final leg to Britain.
The camp at Bethune is reached by a muddy winding path through the forest past fly tipped rubbish.
When The Sun on Sunday visited the camp a pan of water was boiling over a smoky fire as the group prepared an evening meal of rice and mushrooms.
Another Vietnamese man, who refused to give his name, said: “My family back paid someone and they got me this far.
“People in England will get me a job when I get there. It’s scary when you think what happened but that’s the chance you take and I am ready to risk my life.”
Lorry driver Maurice ‘Mo’ Robinson, 25, was charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, conspiracy to traffic humans, conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration and money laundering. The dad-to-be will appear at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Monday.
Three other people, including haulage boss Thomas Maher and wife Joanna Maher, both 38, from Warrington, Cheshire, have since been released on bail after being quizzed by cops.
VILLAGE OF THE DOOMED Up to 25 victims in Essex lorry may be from same village in Vietnam
UP to 25 victims of the Essex lorry horror are from one Vietnamese farming village, it was claimed.
Families in Yen Thanh are in mourning after hearing nothing from loved ones. It is feared they were among 31 men and eight women found in a refrigerated trailer, 5,000 miles away in Grays on Wednesday.
The family of Pham Thi Tra My, 26, told how she was tricked into paying £30,000 for a “VIP” trip.
Tra My texted her mum “I love you so much. I’m dying because I can’t breathe”, as she suffocated in the sealed trailer, it is claimed.
Dad Pham Van Thin said he and his wife paid Snakehead gangs £30,000 for their daughter’s trip despite earning just £400 a month.
Pham said: “I’ve lost my loved one and my money. The smugglers said this was a safe way — by plane or car.
“If I’d known she would go by this route, I would not have let her go.”
Det Chief Insp Martin Pasmore, heading the task of identifying the bodies, said his team had found “very few” documents in the lorry.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has since ordered an investigation into alleged human trafficking activities after fears the victims were from small farming communities in the Southeast Asian country.
The town of Yen Thanh, where many of the 39 victims are believed to be from, have also been left reeling the desperate dash for a new life ended in tragedy.
But in the small camp made up of makeshift tents filled with sleeping bags and blankets in regional France, migrants are still depending on human traffickers.
They believe they will be put into trucks in nearby lay-bys before being driven an hour north to Calais.
From there they board a ferry to Dover or the Eurotunnel to Folkestone, while others head across to Belgium and the port of Zeebrugge, 90 minutes away.
Duk said: “I need to find work so I can pay back my family for the money they gave the traffickers, I will do any work I can, I am fit and strong.”
MOST READ IN NEWS
And despite the tragedy, one alleged trafficker laughed, saying: “It’s the luck of the draw”.
Yesterday devastated relatives claimed the lorry was one of three carrying 100 migrants to the UK.Two vehicles are thought to have completed their trips to unknown destinations.
The third, carrying the victims, was delayed somewhere en route, it is claimed.