Maurice Robinson, a 25-year-old truck driver from Northern Ireland accused over the death of 39 migrants in Britain, has pleaded guilty to charges of assisting illegal immigration.
Robinson had been charged with 39 counts of manslaughter, conspiracy to traffic people and money laundering.
He was not asked to enter a plea for the other charges.
No trial date was set and Robinson is next due in court on December 13.
Robinson, from Craigavon in Northern Ireland, was arrested after police found the bodies of 39 people in the back of a truck he was allegedly driving.
Another 23-year-old man is also due to face court today in connection with the tragedy, while a third is awaiting extradition from Ireland, accused of involvement in what police believe is a wider people-smuggling syndicate.
The victims were discovered in a truck container at Waterglade Industrial Park in Grays, by the River Thames, in Essex on October 23.
All 39 victims — 38 adults and one teenager — were pronounced dead at the scene.
Police initially struggled to identify the victims, 31 men and boys and eight women. Initially, British police believed the victims were Chinese, but later sought help from the Vietnamese community.
Most of the victims were from the provinces of Nghe An and Ha Tinh, in north-central Vietnam.
The oldest of the victims was 44 while three were aged under 18.
Police in Vietnam arrested eight people in relation to the deaths earlier this month.
ABC/Reuters
