The bodies of 39 people have been found inside a truck container in Essex, England.
The 25-year-old driver of the truck has been arrested and a murder investigation has been launched in the wake of the discovery at an industrial park east of London, per The Guardian's Wednesday morning report. One victim has been confirmed by police to be a teenager, while the rest are believed to be of adults.
"We believe the lorry is from Bulgaria and entered the country at Holyhead on Saturday 19 October and we are working closely with our partners to investigate," Essex Police Chief Superintendent Andrew Mariner said. "We have arrested the lorry driver in connection with the incident who remains in police custody as our inquiries continue. I appreciate this cordon is going to disrupt the activity of local businesses in the area and we will work to ensure that disruption is kept as short as possible."
The driver, arrested on suspicion of murder, was later determined to be from Northern Ireland and is currently still in custody.
"At this stage we have not identified where the victims are from or their identities, and we anticipate that this could be a lengthy process," Essex Police Deputy Chief Constable Pippa Mills said.
The bodies were found after authorities received word that regional emergency services had been tipped off to the bodies inside the truck container. Upon emergency personnel's arrival on the scene, all 39 people were pronounced dead.
