Vietnam receives documents from UK to help identify suspected Essex truck victims

The eight women and 31 men found on Wednesday in a refrigerated container in Essex, southeast England, were originally identified as Chinese

But several Vietnamese families have since come forward saying that they fear their relatives are among the dead

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Hoang Thi Ai, 48, shows a picture of her son Hoang Van Tiep, who is suspected to be among the 39 people found dead in a refrigerated truck in Britain. Photo: Reuters

Published: 5:57pm, 28 Oct 2019Updated: 7:57pm, 29 Oct 2019

Britain has sent documents to Vietnam to help identify some of the 39 people found dead in a truck near London, Hanoi said on Monday, as fears mount that most of the dead were Vietnamese.

The eight women and 31 men found on Wednesday in a refrigerated container in Essex, southeast England, were originally identified as Chinese.

But several Vietnamese families have come forward saying they fear their relatives are among the dead.

Officials started collecting DNA samples from families in Nghe An and Ha Tinh, impoverished central provinces where most of the suspected victims came from.

On Monday, Vietnam said Britain had sent documents to help with the complicated task of identifying the bodies, many who were believed to be carrying falsified passports.

“The UK side has sent four sets of dossiers related to the Essex lorry deaths … for verification coordination,” Deputy Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son said, according to a report on the government’s website.