Canadian police charge seven people with trafficking and exploitation of Mexican immigrants

Canadian police accused seven people of trafficking and exploiting 64 Mexican migrants and said they were part of an international labor trafficking network operating in the Toronto region.

On Friday, Ontario’s York Regional Police said they had obtained information in November that migrant men and women were being exploited at work.

The investigation – carried out in collaboration with the local Border Services Agency (CBSA) – revealed that “an organized group of criminals lured victims to Canada with promises of a good job and a better life,” according to a police statement.

“They ended up living in deplorable conditions and were driven to work places in dilapidated private buses,” police said. The migrants were “mistreated, abused and exploited” in farms, factories and warehouses, she added.

The victims testified that dozens of them were sleeping on mattresses on the floor and reported “coercion and control” as well as sexual assaults, Detective Sergeant Gary McBride said.

Police detained five citizens, two Canadians and three Mexicans, and issued arrest warrants for two others, he said. The charges include human trafficking, sexual assault and work for a criminal organization.

Canada is increasingly dependent on immigrant workers for its factories, farms and other workplaces. Their defenders maintain that, even when they arrive in the North American country legally, they are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse, in part due to their precarious immigration status.

Connect with the Voice of America! Subscribe to our channel Youtube and activate notifications, or follow us on social networks: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.