Two Moroccans among suspects linked with UK migrant truck deaths

Police in Belgium and France annouced, Wednesday, the arrests of 26 people suspected of taking part in a human trafficking network. The latter is allegedly involved in the death of 39 Vietnamese migrants found in a truck container in Britain in 2019, Associated Press reported.

Two Moroccans are among the 26 suspects arrested in both France and Belgium. The two Moroccans were arrested, Tuesday, in the Brussels area, the news agency added.

«That organization is notably suspected, in a case handled mainly by Britain, of having made possible a transport in a refrigerated truck, discovered on the night of 22 to 23 October 2019 by the British police in an industrial area in Grays», the federal public prosecutor's office said in Brussels.

Investigators suggest that the victims paid smugglers to reach Europe. The migrants died from lack of oxygen and overheating.

The suspects are facing up to 15 years in prison and a fine of 150,000 euros per identified victim, the same source concluded.