Another man has been charged after 39 bodies were discovered in a lorry near the Dartford Crossing three years ago.

Marius Mihai Draghici, 49, faces 39 counts of manslaughter after the bodies were found in the back of a lorry trailer in Grays.

He was arrested by police in Romania in August.

The charge comes a week after the third anniversary of the tragic incident which saw the bodies of Vietnamese men, woman and children discovered in October 2019.

Draghici is in Essex Police custody and faces another charge of conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration.

He appeared before Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court this morning and was remanded in custody until November 28, when he will appear at the Central Criminal Court.

The lorry had travelled from Zeebrugge in Belgium to the Port of Purfleet, in Essex; and each of the victims, and their families, had paid money to an organised criminal group that promised them safe passage to the UK.

However, that promise turned to tragedy and the victims suffocated in the back of the lorry which was being driven by Northern Irishman Maurice Robinson.

An investigation led to 10 people being sentenced for their roles in the deaths.

Earlier this year, police said they were searching for Draghici as the "final piece of the jigsaw".