Vietnam receives first bodies found in British truck

The first 16 remains of the 39 people found dead in a truck in Britain last month have been repatriated to Vietnam.

The bodies arrived at Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi early Wednesday and would be taken to the homes of their next of kin, officials said. 

The other remains are expected to arrive in the coming days, though officials have not announced the schedule.

Investigations are underway in both the UK and Vietnam, with several people arrested or charged, after the bodies were discovered in a refrigerated lorry in an industrial state in Essex on October 23.

Repatriation of each body will cost each of the victims' families more than 66.2 million Vietnamese dong (around AED 10,490), with the Vietnamese government offering loans to relatives.