Gang convicted for migrants trafficking, exploiting them at UK cannabis

Authorities in the UK have condemned six men, including three of Vietnamese origin, for migrant trafficking and forcing them to work on cannabis farms throughout the country. Gang exploited victims by bonding debt, operating in Midlands, London and North England, National Crime Agency (NCA) said on Tuesday.

The network was discovered by a NCA investigation, which led to arrest between 2021 and 2022. The probe identified the band leader, Van Nguyen, who controlled the cannabis farms. The group has rented properties using false documents and alias to perform its illegal operations. According to NCA, Nguyen is a “smuggler of convicted people.”

It seems that three Vietnamese nationals were pregnant with the exploitation of migrant workers in cannabis farms. Two other members, who work as a taxi drivers, transported migrants between properties, winning hundreds of pounds on the trip, while the final member served as an intermediary, managing cannabis sales and arranging properties in Birmingham.

Occasionally, it would also carry cannabis or farm equipment.

“Not only did the migrants be transported to the UK in incredibly dangerous ways -trucks or boats -but were then made to live in degrading conditions to pay their debt. We know that some were also subject to violence, “said the commander of the NCA branch, Kevin Broadhead.

A national Vietnamese, identified as “Z” – an individual in this case – testified that he arrived in the UK by boat in 2020 and was treated by the gang. After compensating the immigration, Z was driven from London to a Birmingham cannabis farm. Caught in the debt tap, he said he had nothing to do but solve the amount owed.

According to NCA, Z remembered that he was forced to clarify a cannabis farm in Tysele, Birmingham. The complaints regarding the conditions of the farm determined the gang to move the operations to another Hartlepool farm. The police in Cleveland attacked the property in June 2021, finding a pleading note that wrote: “Take what you want, please do not hit me, I do not know English”, together with an entrance to the journal, saying: “Why was I beaten and forced to work?” During that operation, Z was arrested.

The band members were arrested in 2021, while their leader, Nguyen-Deja in prison for a separate plot to smuggle migrants in the UK were re-arrested in 2022 for cannabis production and trafficking offenses.

Nguyen and another member of the band pleaded guilty for conspiracy for cannabis production, while the others denied the accusation. All six denied traffic charges for operation.

However, the court found guilty. They remain in arrest until conviction, which is scheduled for July.