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\nSuperintendent Siobh\u00e1n Mollohan (C) paid tribute to the seven victims, saying that the courage they displayed in coming forward could not be overstated<\/p>\n
Two men from Eastern Europe have been jailed 13 and 11 years for human trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation – the first conviction of its type in the State.<\/p>\n
Georgijs Poniza, 37, from Latvia and 30-year-old Armen Pogosyan from Uzbekistan of Armenian nationality were sentenced to a total of 24 years in prison.<\/p>\n
They plead guilty to human trafficking, money laundering and forgery offences between December 2020 and October 2023.<\/p>\n
Seven victims, including one woman and six men, were recruited by deception in Latvia, promised employment, a good salary, accommodation and “a better life”.<\/p>\n
Approximately \u20ac750,000 in wages was taken from the victims, aged from their 40s to 60s, the Letterkenny Circuit Court heard.<\/p>\n
One victim said he was “treated like a slave and an animal”, while another said, “it was like a slave trade”.<\/p>\n
Judge John Alymer said both Georgijs Poniza and Armen Pogosyan played a lead role in this enterprise and acted in the expectation of very substantial, financial advantage.<\/p>\n
He said there was a high degree of planning, a substantial degree of threat and menace and use of threat against victims and their families at home in Latvia.<\/p>\n
He noted the number of victims, the psychological harm they endured and the impact it continues to have on them.<\/p>\n
He said serious medical conditions were ignored in relation to victims, noting that one man who escaped suffered an epileptic fit on the day of his escape.<\/p>\n
The court heard that both accused took advantage of victims who were vulnerable, living in impoverished conditions and recruited on the promise of a better life in Ireland.<\/p>\n
“You provided them with extremely substandard accommodation, completely inadequate winter heating, minimal privacy and no proper bedding,” Judge Alymer said.<\/p>\n
He said the victims suffered extreme humiliation and they described being treated like property, animals and slaves.<\/p>\n
He said once work stopped, victims were left homeless, scavenging in bins for food. He noted the “harrowing victim impact statements”.<\/p>\n
In respect of Georgis Poniza, Judge Alymer noted he entered a late plea of guilty, had no previous conviction and made some admissions on his 12th and 13th interview.<\/p>\n
He also noted his personal circumstances, his previous work record and his expression of remorse through counsel.<\/p>\n
In respect of Armen Pogosyan, Judge Alymer described him as an “enthusiastic assistant” and noted he entered a late plea of guilty, no previous convictions, had good work engagement prior to offending and was helpful during interviews.<\/p>\n
Judge Alymer noted that it did appear that Pogosyan was less violent than his co-accused and that he acted under his direction.<\/p>\n
He imposed identical sentences on both men of 13 years and suspended the final two years of Armen Pogosyan’s sentence to take account of mitigating circumstances.<\/p>\n
The prosecution was led by Patricia McLaughlin SC, with Fiona Crawford BL, instructed by State Solicitor Kieran Dillon.<\/p>\n
Ms McLaughlin SC said during the sentencing hearing that the case represented the first conviction of its type in the country of human trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation.<\/p>\n
‘I felt like a prisoner’<\/p>\n
One victim attempted to escape four or five times, but was caught and beaten each time, suffering bodily bruises to prevent visible bruising, the court heard.<\/p>\n
“I felt like \u2026 a prisoner because they would not let us go anywhere,” one victim’s impact statement said.
The court heard that it would appear the criminality began in December 2020 and continued until October 2023.<\/p>\n
Ms McLaughlin said the first victim presented at Store Street Garda Station in Dublin on 25 April 2022, alleging he was trafficked from Lativia for labour exploitation.<\/p>\n
Six other victims came forward. All victims were susceptible to being trafficked, the court heard. They had little or no English.<\/p>\n
The victims were not aware they were going to Donegal before arriving at Dublin Airport.<\/p>\n
They were provided with substandard accommodation, controlled and rented by the defendants in Rossnowlagh and Ballyshannon, the court heard.<\/p>\n
Some victims were not provided with bedding, had to sleep on mattresses on a floor and had to allocate some of their minimal pay for bedding.<\/p>\n
People were like ‘fish in a can’<\/p>\n
One victim said people were like “fish in a can” in the property and added that the accused dictated the victims’ movements as they seldom left the accommodation due to a language barrier and a lack of transport, the court heard.<\/p>\n
Garda\u00ed noted food was limited during a property search in October 2023. The court heard of an instance where one victim walked 5km for food which was labelled for the bin at a commercial premises.<\/p>\n
One victim said he “felt like he was treated like a slave and an animal”.<\/p>\n
Both Georgijs Poniza and Armen Pogosyan were due to stand trial last year. It was adjourned after a jury was empanelled. Both defendants later pleaded guilty.<\/p>\n
The court heard that victims were given oversized footwear, inappropriate clothing and often transported to locations in the west, north west and Northern Ireland to work at one business.<\/p>\n
Subsequently, the victims began employment at a separate business in south Donegal and were transported by the defendants to and from work.<\/p>\n
Some victims finished work at 4am and others began at 8am. Often they were expected to wait four hours for transport. The court heard they often slept on the workplace floor.<\/p>\n
Detective Garda Patrick Kelly of Donegal Town Garda Station said the victims never received payslips and that their PPS numbers were controlled by the accused.<\/p>\n
He said victims were not aware that emergency tax had been paid on their wages and outlined how the accused-maintained control of victims\u2019 wages using shell companies.<\/p>\n
When the employer in south Donegal ceased employment, the accused sought employment for the victims at another business in Sligo, who did not uptake the offer.<\/p>\n
The court heard both businesses cooperated with the investigation. A statement from the second business said that in the past staff shortages were filled by agency staff.<\/p>\n
Victim says accused were ‘slave owners’<\/p>\n
One victim labelled the accused as “slave owners” and added that threats of violence were issued when they disobeyed orders.<\/p>\n
The court heard that the victims saw the accused interact, often in a friendly manner with local garda\u00ed, thus perceiving that there was a friendly relationship between them.<\/p>\n
They felt that the defendants had tarnished their reputation, portraying them as alcoholics.<\/p>\n
Given the language barrier, the Latvian victims did not understand the conversations and felt they could not approach local garda\u00ed about their situation.<\/p>\n
One victim, who attempted to escape was penalised for drinking, deducted money after travelling to Dublin and could not book flights home as he had no bank account.<\/p>\n
He was assisted by the Latvian Embassy; however, he was threatened by Georgijs Poniza on the phone and returned on the promise that things would be better.<\/p>\n
After he arrived at Dublin Airport, he was repeatedly assaulted in the back of a car on his journey to the north west. His passport was taken and used to set up a company.<\/p>\n
The court heard he planned to leave alongside another victim on 4 June 2022. He lived on the streets, indicating it “was better than the situation they were in”.<\/p>\n
Another victim first came to the attention of garda\u00ed when he was admitted to St James Hospital in Dublin after he had health issues.<\/p>\n
The female victim said she was threatened and made sign a debt bond after securing independent employment.<\/p>\n
“I believed they picked people to work for them who would not answer back, who could not speak English, drug addicts and alcohol addicts. They did not believe we would change,” she said.<\/p>\n
Another victim said he never received full wages and alluded to violence against other victims while others gave evidence of cards and accounts opened in their names.<\/p>\n
One victim said he worked nights, was not allowed to rest during the day and assaulted when he threatened to leave. “I was like a slave. I could not speak English,” he said.<\/p>\n
He described the treatment as something that resembled the former USSR regime.<\/p>\n
The victim said, both Georgijs Poniza and Armen Pogosyan, gave up their jobs when the victims began work. “My take \u2026 why should they work when they can take our money?”<\/p>\n
They were torturing us … this is why I came forward<\/p>\n
Another victim said he ended up in hospital several times because of psychological pressure, describing one occasion where he had to walk more than 30km.<\/p>\n
The victim said he struggled to manage his epilepsy diagnosis because of the environment. He said as he did not have money, this made him vulnerable.<\/p>\n
“They were torturing us … this is why I came forward … when I was coming to Ireland, they gave me hope. Now, I\u2019m homeless and living on the street,” his victim impact statement said.<\/p>\n
Another victim said following an argument with Poniza about wages, he was assaulted and suffered injuries to his ribs. He described wearing a belt around his rib cage for pain relief.<\/p>\n
“I was treated like a worthless piece of s**t by Georgis and Armen \u2026 It was like a slave trade \u2026 they were using people for their own advantage,” one victim impact statement said.<\/p>\n
The court heard more than \u20ac120,000 was spent in an amusement arcade by the accused. A letter from that business recalled a large number of cashback transactions.<\/p>\n
Georgijs Poniza was born in Riga and he came to Ireland in 2017. He initially worked as a mechanic and in a grocery store.<\/p>\n
A forensic psychology report reflected that he experienced a horrific childhood, suffering post-traumatic stress disorder.<\/p>\n
His father was a drug addict who assaulted his mother. She abused alcohol. He was placed in state care on many occasions.<\/p>\n
He consumed drugs as a teenager to alleviate childhood trauma. He reduced the drug use significantly by the age of 22, which coincided with meeting his wife.<\/p>\n
Their relationship has broken down since he was in prison and he has little or no access to his children, the court heard.<\/p>\n
The court was told that Armen Pogosyan travelled to Ireland as an economic migrant with his wife, hoping to improve their circumstances and his relationship with his wife has broken down since being incarcerated.<\/p>\n
Both men, who are reportedly engaging well in prison apologised to their victims through their legal defence. Both defences alluded to their positive engagement in prison.<\/p>\n
The court heard that Pogosyan has participated in various courses including restorative justice, baking and barista coffee making while in prison.<\/p>\n
‘A day of action’<\/p>\n
Georgijs Poniza and Armen Pogosyan were arrested on 24 October 2023 in what was described as “a day of action” as arrests and searches also took place in Lativa.<\/p>\n
Both men were detained in Ballyshannon Garda Station and subsequently charged on 28 October. Georgijs Poniza has six previous convictions. Armen Pogosyan has none.<\/p>\n
Many witnesses had been scheduled to give evidence in a trial which was due to last up to six weeks late last year, but both men changed their pleas to guilty.<\/p>\n
The court heard this was an extensive, comprehensive investigation focused on allegations of human trafficking.<\/p>\n
‘Appalling exploitation and suffering inflicted\u2019<\/p>\n
Following the sentencing, Superintendent Siobh\u00e1n Mollohan said the sentencing marked the conclusion of one section of a significant investigation into Human Trafficking for Labour Exploitation.<\/p>\n
“This investigation exposed the appalling exploitation and suffering inflicted upon seven vulnerable individuals for financial gain,” she said.<\/p>\n
Supt Mollohan paid tribute to the seven victims in this case, adding that the courage the displayed in coming forward and speaking to garda\u00ed “cannot be overstated”.<\/p>\n
“They had endured unimaginable hardship, fear and degradation over an extended period of time.<\/p>\n
“They were subjected to miserable slave-like living conditions and stripped of their dignity and basic human rights by those who sought to profit from their vulnerability.<\/p>\n
“They were sold a dream life in this country – a good salary and housing. A brighter future, a better life.<\/p>\n
“Instead, they were forced to live in inhumane conditions in cold, damp accommodation without proper bedding.<\/p>\n
“At one stage, one of the victims was left so desperate for food that they were forced to search through bins,” she said.<\/p>\n
\nSuperintendent Siobh\u00e1n Mollohan (C) paid tribute to the seven victims, saying that the courage they displayed in coming forward could not be overstated<\/p>\n
Supt Mollohan said the offenders did not view the victims as human beings, but as slaves to be controlled and exploited for labour and profit.<\/p>\n
“The victims showed immense bravery in placing their trust in garda\u00ed and providing detailed accounts of the abuse and exploitation they suffered.<\/p>\n
“The willingness of these people to speak out has not only helped them pursue justice in this case but will also help other victims to come forward.”<\/p>\n
The case was investigated by Detectives from the Donegal Division, supported by the Human Trafficking Investigation and Coordination Unit of the Garda National Protective Services Bureau, Detectives in the Sligo\/Leitrim Division and specialist units.<\/p>\n
Supt Mollohan said criminals who engage in human trafficking do not recognise borders, and neither can law enforcement in our efforts to combat them.<\/p>\n
“This case involved significant international cooperation from our close partners in Europol, Eurojust and Latvian Law Enforcement.<\/p>\n
“I also want to acknowledge the work of the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Donegal State Solicitor in bringing this case to Court.<\/p>\n
“This investigation also sends a clear message – those who seek to exploit vulnerable people for profit will be pursued relentlessly and brought before the courts,” she said.<\/p>\n
\u2018Modern slavery exists in many forms\u2019<\/p>\n
Supt Mollohan said: “Modern slavery exists in many forms and is often \u2018hidden in plain sight\u2019.<\/p>\n
“It is the responsibility of us all – garda\u00ed and the public – to remain vigilant and work together to identify those at risk so that they can be safeguarded.<\/p>\n
She encouraged anyone who is a victim of exploitation, or anyone who has concerns about human trafficking or modern slavery in their community to report it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two men from Eastern Europe have been jailed 13 and 11 years for human trafficking for the purpose…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":506389,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,43],"class_list":["post-506388","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/506388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=506388"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/506388\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/506389"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=506388"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=506388"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=506388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}