Smuggler jailed for deaths of 39 Vietnamese migrants in lorry in Essex made '£90,000' in profits

A gang "ringleader" convicted over the deaths of 39 Vietnamese men, women and children in a lorry in Essex made at least £90,000 from people-smuggling, a court has been told.

Gheorghe Nica, 46, from Basildon, profited from a long-running operation where migrants would pay up to £13,000 for what they thought was a “VIP service”.

The Romanian was jailed for 27 years for the manslaughter of the victims, who died in sweltering conditions as they were transported in an airtight container from Belgium to Purfleet in Essex on 22 October 2019.

There were seven smuggling trips between May 2018 and October 2019, but investigators believe there were more.

Migrants would board lorries at a remote location to be transported to Britain, where they would be picked up by a fleet of smaller vehicles organised by Nica for transfer to a safe house until payment was received.

Nica was one of five gang members jailed for the manslaughters, with others convicted of people-smuggling.

He claimed he only earned £5,000 from the whole operation, but a financial investigator identified at least £90,000 of ill-gotten gains.

A confiscation hearing at the Old Bailey on Tuesday heard that unexplained cash deposits to Nica’s bank account from 2014 to 2019 totalled £24,430.

And euros valued at £4,411 were seized when he was arrested in Frankfurt, Germany, in January 2020.

Prosecutor Jonathan Polnay said there was a cash deposit of £7,000 for the purchase of a Range Rover Evoque in July 2018.

He also highlighted “hidden assets” of 70,000 euros relating to a loan on a property in Romania.

It was taken out in November 2019 and paid into Nica’s wife’s account while he was on the run.

Nica disputed the figures, saying he had “struggled” financially and needed money to support his wife and three children, including a disabled daughter.

The former driver and mechanic accepted being involved in smuggling, having claimed in his trial he suspected it was goods and not people being transported.

But he said he was not a leader, organiser and manager of the gang.

Mr Polnay said: “I suggest you have got money hidden away, Mr Nica.”

Nica said: “I wish.”

The prosecutor accused Nica of lying, as he had in his trial, saying: “I suggest you do have money – the proceeds of your crime.”

Nica’s ex-wife and bookkeeper Elena Adelina Nica told the court there was “nothing unusual” in cash payments in her husband’s business.

In November 2019, she was in Romania and had “no idea what was going on” in England, she said.

Mrs Nica denied being aware that her husband was involved in people-smuggling or that the 70,000-euro loan was to conceal his money.

She said it was not unusual to keep cash at home in Romania, but added: “I did not have a pile of money.”

She said: “I do not think it’s fair what is happening. If he was to have any money I’m telling you I would be abroad and I would not be here. I would pay therapy for my daughter if I had money to live on, if there were hidden assets.”

Asked if she was aware of the nature of her ex-husband’s crimes, she added: “I do not believe he was guilty of the manslaughter and I cannot accept it.”

Mrs Nica became emotional about the effect of the case on her family, saying: “With my kids, we feel like animals. We are not guilty of anything.”

Earlier, Nica said he worked in Dublin before coming to England in 2008 and worked driving and fixing lorries in the Basildon area.

In 2012, he was left needing surgery after being badly hurt in a lorry accident.

On his financial state by 2014, he said: “My wife was working as a dental nurse in Basildon and I looked after the kids and we had tenants in the house because we cannot afford the bills because I cannot work.”

He claimed some of the cash deposits were payments for fixing broken-down lorries and said he also made money from exporting car parts.

Defence barrister Rory Keene asked: “Is there anything unusual in accepting cash in the lorry trade?”

Nica said: “No, it’s not unusual. You have to understand the drivers in Europe always have euros so I have to go with them to change into sterling. It’s not an easy process.”

The defendant told the court he paid £10,000 for his mother’s treatment for pancreatic cancer and another £8,000 for her funeral.

Judge Lucraft said he will deliver his ruling on 24 November.

Previously, Nica’s partner in crime, haulage boss Ronan Hughes, from Armagh, Northern Ireland, was ordered to pay the victims’ families more than £180,000 after being jailed for 20 years.

Lorry driver Maurice Robinson, of Craigavon in Northern Ireland, who found the bodies in the back of his trailer and was jailed for 13 years and four months, had to sell his 4×4 vehicle and watch to pay more than £21,000.

Romanian Alexandru-Ovidiu Hanga, from Essex, was ordered to pay £3,000 after being jailed for three years after admitting conspiring to assist unlawful immigration.

Another people-smuggler, Valentin Calota, from Birmingham, was ordered to pay more than £1,000.

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