Inside the Modern British Slave Business | ENDEVR Documentary

00:46:41
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZZNT7v05MI

Summary

TLDRThe video highlights the chilling reality of modern slavery in the UK, despite the country's historical abolition of the practice over 200 years ago. It revolves around the investigation of various cases, primarily focusing on the brutal exploitation of vulnerable individuals by the Connors family, who ran a construction business that operated under slave-like conditions. The narrative outlines the discovery of Christopher Nichols' remains and chronicles the challenges faced by laborers who were coerced into terrifying working and living situations. The documentary sheds light on the extensive operation of organized crime in Britain and emphasizes the urgent need for societal awareness and legislative action to combat this hidden yet pervasive issue.

Takeaways

  • 📈 Modern slavery affects around 13,000 people in the UK.
  • 🕵️‍♂️ The Connors family exploited vulnerable individuals for labor.
  • ⚖️ New anti-slavery legislation is being implemented.
  • 🔍 Victims often face physical and psychological abuse.
  • 🎥 Awareness is crucial to combat modern slavery.
  • 🏚️ Many victims live in terrible conditions with no basic amenities.
  • 📊 Slavery is a lucrative global industry generating $150 billion annually.
  • 🌍 Victims come from various backgrounds, including migrants.
  • 🤝 Society needs to question who is behind the products and services we use.
  • 🚨 Organized crime gangs exploit individuals on the streets.

Timeline

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The video discusses modern slavery in Britain, presenting shocking statistics that suggest there are 13,000 people trapped in this hidden underworld 200 years after Britain abolished slavery. It highlights the organized crime aspect and the alarming rise in numbers despite the government's efforts against this crime.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    The narrative begins with an investigation in Cheltenham, where a gruesome discovery of a human head was made, leading to the identification of Christopher Nichols, who had disappeared under suspicious circumstances in 2000. The investigation uncovers the dark realities of slavery still occurring in modern Britain.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    Christopher Nichols' remains were found in a garden owned by an Irish traveler family, the Connors, who were running a block paving business with their workers living in horrific conditions. Witness testimonies reveal the violent and controlling nature of the Connors, illustrating how they exploited vulnerable individuals for labor.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:20:00

    The investigation into Christopher's case reveals a pattern of abuse and exploitation of workers by the Connors, who were known to beat them for not bringing in work and denying them food. Surveillance operations confirmed allegations of mistreatment and poor living conditions of unpaid laborers.

  • 00:20:00 - 00:25:00

    After gathering evidence against the Connors, police launched a raid, rescuing 16 workers who recounted tales of slavery and abuse. Some were held for over 30 years, leading to the arrest of the Connors and their family members, who were charged with human trafficking and slavery offenses.

  • 00:25:00 - 00:30:00

    The Connors’ lifestyle contrasted sharply with the conditions of their workers, highlighting the exploitation further. Investigations into the financial benefits they gained from slavery revealed significant wealth accumulated through the suffering of their workers.

  • 00:30:00 - 00:35:00

    Several legal actions followed the raid, resulting in the Connors receiving long prison sentences. However, the investigation failed to link the Connors to the mysterious death of Christopher Nichols.

  • 00:35:00 - 00:40:00

    The video transitions to highlight that modern slavery is not confined to specific communities but is a widespread issue affecting many across the UK, with examples in different industries, such as nail bars and agriculture, where exploitation persists.

  • 00:40:00 - 00:46:41

    The narrative concludes by emphasizing that despite legal measures and public awareness, the issue of modern slavery continues to thrive. It calls for increased vigilance and societal change to address the conditions that allow such exploitation to happen in plain sight.

Show more

Mind Map

Video Q&A

  • How many people are estimated to be trapped in modern slavery in the UK?

    Approximately 13,000 individuals are said to be trapped in modern slavery in the UK.

  • What led to the discovery of Christopher Nichols' remains?

    The remains were found by a child who mistook them for a football in a garden.

  • What type of conditions did the victims face?

    Victims faced severe abuse, including physical violence, inadequate food, and crowded living conditions.

  • What legal actions were taken against the Connors family?

    The Connors family was arrested and convicted for operating a modern slavery operation and were sentenced to a total of 28 years in prison.

  • How are migrant workers in the UK being targeted for exploitation?

    Migrant workers are often promised jobs but end up exploited with high rents and little to no pay, living in poor conditions.

View more video summaries

Get instant access to free YouTube video summaries powered by AI!
Subtitles
en
Auto Scroll:
  • 00:00:02
    you suspicion slaver who who is he
  • 00:00:04
    slaving 200 years after Britain
  • 00:00:07
    abolished slavery there's no slaves
  • 00:00:09
    there it's back you were literally made
  • 00:00:11
    to and and P punished almost like an
  • 00:00:15
    open concentration C get in the UK
  • 00:00:19
    13,000 are said to be trapped in this
  • 00:00:21
    hidden underworld
  • 00:00:26
    when the Prime Minister Theresa May has
  • 00:00:29
    described slavery is a barbaric evil and
  • 00:00:32
    the numbers continue to rise this is
  • 00:00:35
    organized crime on a scale the world
  • 00:00:37
    hasn't seen before for the past 2 years
  • 00:00:40
    we've had unique access it to two of
  • 00:00:43
    Britain's biggest slavery cases you
  • 00:00:46
    quite often beat them no they said if
  • 00:00:50
    you try leave get murder you this is the
  • 00:00:54
    story of Britain's modernday slaves I
  • 00:00:57
    tell people that it's going on within 10
  • 00:00:59
    miles of where the S regardless of where
  • 00:01:01
    they are in the country it's that
  • 00:01:03
    [Music]
  • 00:01:09
    widespread the wealthy Gentile town of
  • 00:01:12
    chelham in the
  • 00:01:14
    CWS an unlikely place you would think to
  • 00:01:16
    find
  • 00:01:18
    slavery but in recent years this
  • 00:01:20
    well-healed town has been the center of
  • 00:01:22
    a major slavery
  • 00:01:26
    investigation it All Began in 2008 with
  • 00:01:30
    a Grizzly Discovery at the bottom of a
  • 00:01:34
    garden my son came across this what he
  • 00:01:38
    thought was a football and he kicked it
  • 00:01:41
    with his foot to turn it over and then
  • 00:01:45
    he found that there were teeth in it so
  • 00:01:48
    it wasn't a ball at all and it was
  • 00:01:51
    actually a human
  • 00:01:53
    [Music]
  • 00:01:57
    head the skeleton had Lain in the
  • 00:01:59
    undergrowth for 3
  • 00:02:02
    years its Discovery would expose a world
  • 00:02:05
    of slavery and horror that most people
  • 00:02:08
    thought had disappeared two centuries
  • 00:02:11
    previously it was just skeletal remains
  • 00:02:13
    and we had to have DNA abstracted from
  • 00:02:16
    the bones and then there was a process
  • 00:02:18
    of DNA profiling which enabled us to
  • 00:02:20
    identify
  • 00:02:22
    Christoper The Remains belonged to
  • 00:02:24
    Christopher Nichols a father of two from
  • 00:02:27
    Bristol he disappeared in 200 to when he
  • 00:02:30
    was
  • 00:02:31
    37 he said to us I found a new job dad
  • 00:02:35
    he said I'm going to work for this lady
  • 00:02:38
    up in Gloucester to help her as a
  • 00:02:40
    handyman they seemed quite happy about
  • 00:02:42
    it so we said oh fine you know keep in
  • 00:02:44
    touch with us that's the last I've seen
  • 00:02:46
    of
  • 00:02:48
    him through the bridge there is the
  • 00:02:50
    house and the garden where Christopher's
  • 00:02:53
    remains were found and we were able to
  • 00:02:55
    establish once we'd identified him by
  • 00:02:57
    his DNA that this place was the the last
  • 00:03:00
    address that he' lived
  • 00:03:02
    at we came to the premises here and
  • 00:03:05
    spoke to the occupants who we found to
  • 00:03:07
    be William and breeda
  • 00:03:11
    Connors William Connors known as Billy
  • 00:03:14
    his wife breeda and their children are
  • 00:03:17
    an Irish traveler
  • 00:03:19
    family they own Travelers sites in
  • 00:03:21
    gloustershire and other
  • 00:03:23
    counties from their homes they ran their
  • 00:03:26
    family business block Paving driveways
  • 00:03:29
    and Patio
  • 00:03:30
    unusually their workers lived with
  • 00:03:33
    them at one point that included
  • 00:03:36
    Christopher
  • 00:03:38
    Nichols their tale to us at that time
  • 00:03:40
    was that in 2005 um he left to his own
  • 00:03:45
    valtion he just chose to leave and he
  • 00:03:47
    went off and they didn't see him
  • 00:03:49
    [Music]
  • 00:03:50
    again our inquiries continued and we're
  • 00:03:53
    able to identify a friend of Christopher
  • 00:03:55
    who it turned out had been recruited by
  • 00:03:58
    the Connors with him and he told a very
  • 00:04:01
    very different story The friend's
  • 00:04:04
    account was backed up by another man
  • 00:04:06
    John who was held by the Conners for 13
  • 00:04:10
    years he's asked us to hide his identity
  • 00:04:13
    for fear of reprisals I went to
  • 00:04:15
    somewhere which was almost like an open
  • 00:04:18
    concentration camp where you were
  • 00:04:20
    literally made to work and un P punished
  • 00:04:24
    you know on a regular
  • 00:04:26
    basis I couldn't see any means of
  • 00:04:28
    getting away or escaping
  • 00:04:30
    even Christopher was the Connor's main
  • 00:04:33
    salesman responsible for bringing in the
  • 00:04:35
    lucrative block Paving jobs if they
  • 00:04:38
    didn't get any work um for the Connors
  • 00:04:41
    then often they were subject to violence
  • 00:04:43
    and that was typical of the way that
  • 00:04:44
    Billy Connors would
  • 00:04:47
    behave his actions could be quite
  • 00:04:49
    extreme Chris he' been beaten with a
  • 00:04:52
    metal tool bar which really hurt him
  • 00:04:55
    badly I heard the cries we were all told
  • 00:04:58
    to stay in our trailers all was going
  • 00:05:01
    on Christopher did try to escape the
  • 00:05:04
    Connor's
  • 00:05:05
    clutches cwoods inquiries took him back
  • 00:05:08
    to what was at that time billi and
  • 00:05:11
    Breeder's home he left the premises in
  • 00:05:13
    the middle of the night and for some
  • 00:05:15
    reason stepped out into the road and
  • 00:05:17
    been hit by a aaran vehicle and
  • 00:05:19
    sustained very serious injuries which uh
  • 00:05:22
    resulted in being in him being
  • 00:05:26
    hospitalized Christopher's Hospital stay
  • 00:05:28
    was abruptly cut short when Billy
  • 00:05:31
    Conners and his worker John paid him a
  • 00:05:35
    visit Chris looked absolutely
  • 00:05:39
    terrified but when we seen him he looked
  • 00:05:42
    very poor he was very bruised not well
  • 00:05:45
    at all and can get out of the bed but
  • 00:05:48
    the object of the vision
  • 00:05:51
    apparently was to get him from there and
  • 00:05:53
    take him back to site where he would be
  • 00:05:57
    put back to work
  • 00:06:00
    I couldn't believe that that was really
  • 00:06:02
    taking place I was convinced that my
  • 00:06:05
    boss was a cyle to inh
  • 00:06:09
    human Christopher returned to Billy and
  • 00:06:12
    breeda but the accident had left him
  • 00:06:15
    incontinent and unable to
  • 00:06:17
    work 4 months later he disappeared it
  • 00:06:22
    would be the last anyone would sa
  • 00:06:24
    him we were just told that he'd gone
  • 00:06:27
    they' moved off one minute he was there
  • 00:06:30
    the next minute he was
  • 00:06:32
    gone what had begun as a case of
  • 00:06:35
    unidentified human remains was Now
  • 00:06:38
    overshadowed by alarming Tales of slave
  • 00:06:40
    likee conditions at Billy Connor's
  • 00:06:43
    sites so detective superintendent
  • 00:06:45
    selwood decided to put the Connors under
  • 00:06:51
    surveillance and very quickly almost
  • 00:06:54
    every day we did surveillance we saw
  • 00:06:56
    workers leaving one or other of Billy
  • 00:06:58
    sites going on to work on
  • 00:07:01
    [Music]
  • 00:07:05
    driveways they worked in all weathers
  • 00:07:08
    that winter was a particularly cold
  • 00:07:10
    winter with snow on the ground they'd
  • 00:07:11
    clear the snow and they'd carry on block
  • 00:07:13
    Paving and digging they worked From Dawn
  • 00:07:16
    till
  • 00:07:18
    Dusk Billy and breeda drove their
  • 00:07:21
    workers around the clock 19 hours a day
  • 00:07:24
    6 days a week for as little as5 or no
  • 00:07:28
    pay at all
  • 00:07:33
    the men were given so little to eat they
  • 00:07:35
    were reduced to Scavenging for food in
  • 00:07:37
    dust
  • 00:07:40
    bins and there was more graphic evidence
  • 00:07:43
    of Billy Connor's brutal treatment of
  • 00:07:45
    his
  • 00:07:46
    workers we captured a number of assaults
  • 00:07:50
    and these images show Billy
  • 00:07:53
    Connor here kicking and here
  • 00:07:57
    punching a 17-year-old worker on his
  • 00:08:00
    sight at Beggar's
  • 00:08:03
    [Music]
  • 00:08:08
    Roost this image is the youth in tears
  • 00:08:12
    [Music]
  • 00:08:16
    afterwards one of the workers we
  • 00:08:18
    established was more or less a personal
  • 00:08:19
    slave for Billy and
  • 00:08:21
    breeda why she hit a bol with a broom
  • 00:08:24
    until his head has
  • 00:08:27
    bled I've seen him all his clothes
  • 00:08:30
    removed and then hosed in cold water on
  • 00:08:32
    middle of the winter really um
  • 00:08:38
    awful the police did not want to rely on
  • 00:08:41
    the testimony of vulnerable men to
  • 00:08:43
    prosecute the
  • 00:08:44
    Connors luckily for Sellwood new
  • 00:08:47
    anti-slavery legislation was about to
  • 00:08:49
    come into Force the first for 200
  • 00:08:53
    years now he would need proof that the
  • 00:08:56
    Connors had gotten rich off the backs of
  • 00:08:58
    their workers
  • 00:09:00
    alongside our cobt investigation we ran
  • 00:09:02
    a financial
  • 00:09:03
    investigation and we identified assets
  • 00:09:05
    that we say have valued at over half2
  • 00:09:07
    and a half million we identified bank
  • 00:09:10
    accounts with nearly £600,000 on deposit
  • 00:09:13
    we identified they had a luxurious
  • 00:09:17
    [Music]
  • 00:09:19
    lifestyle their Caravans and their homes
  • 00:09:21
    were luxurious they always drove topof
  • 00:09:24
    the range
  • 00:09:26
    Vehicles they went on expensive holidays
  • 00:09:29
    we had evidence of them going for
  • 00:09:31
    cruises on the Queen Mary exotic
  • 00:09:33
    holidays in America and in
  • 00:09:35
    Europe and they lived a very high
  • 00:09:41
    life with new slavery legislation in
  • 00:09:44
    place cellwood was ready to
  • 00:09:47
    act on the 22nd of March
  • 00:09:50
    2011 he made his
  • 00:09:54
    [Music]
  • 00:09:58
    move one 150 police officers swooped on
  • 00:10:01
    three sites belonging to Billy and
  • 00:10:04
    breida
  • 00:10:10
    Connors the couple were arrested along
  • 00:10:13
    with their two sons and son-in-law miles
  • 00:10:16
    you are making people work in conditions
  • 00:10:18
    am of slavery that's the reason you're
  • 00:10:20
    being
  • 00:10:20
    arrested my life my whole
  • 00:10:24
    life slavery my husband slavery I cannot
  • 00:10:28
    believe what he's getting arrested said
  • 00:10:29
    for love what for who who's his come in
  • 00:10:32
    is that right yeah no problem 16 men
  • 00:10:35
    were
  • 00:10:36
    rescued one of them was
  • 00:10:38
    John he'd been enslaved by the Connors
  • 00:10:41
    for 13
  • 00:10:44
    years remember a knock on the door cable
  • 00:10:48
    there lady cable was there she said I
  • 00:10:50
    want you to get your things together you
  • 00:10:52
    you you come
  • 00:10:55
    outside and yeah El I
  • 00:10:58
    think this 16 rescued men were taken
  • 00:11:01
    away to a safe house in cheltonham one
  • 00:11:04
    man had been held by Billy and breida
  • 00:11:06
    Conners for more than 30 years these
  • 00:11:10
    workers were slaves they were under our
  • 00:11:12
    noses to a degree this has been going on
  • 00:11:14
    for decades in gleria we were completely
  • 00:11:17
    oblivious to it these people had just
  • 00:11:19
    disappeared they didn't exist and the
  • 00:11:21
    Connors were able to exploit
  • 00:11:24
    them for decades the Connor's family had
  • 00:11:28
    scoured town and Resorts across the UK
  • 00:11:31
    looking for potential
  • 00:11:35
    slaves the South Coast was a favorite
  • 00:11:38
    hunting ground for picking up vulnerable
  • 00:11:40
    British
  • 00:11:42
    men September 2009 Bournemouth Mark
  • 00:11:46
    enden had just lost his job and he was
  • 00:11:49
    struggling to make ends
  • 00:11:51
    meet I experienced some hardship I
  • 00:11:54
    started to feel very depressed I I was
  • 00:11:57
    um I withdrew myself I isolated
  • 00:12:00
    myself I was living in a house that was
  • 00:12:02
    uh that was due to be
  • 00:12:04
    sold lost a
  • 00:12:06
    job I was on the very edge of
  • 00:12:12
    destitution but Mark's situation was
  • 00:12:15
    about to take a turn for the worse was
  • 00:12:18
    uh evening in late September 2009 and I
  • 00:12:20
    was just Hing up to the soup kitchen
  • 00:12:22
    here um there's a guy parked outside on
  • 00:12:24
    this corner with um he was in a fairly
  • 00:12:26
    nice car he had his um his wife and his
  • 00:12:28
    kid with him and um he asked me if I was
  • 00:12:31
    looking for a job said he could throw in
  • 00:12:32
    his throw in accommodation three meals a
  • 00:12:34
    day and I thought why not so I went with
  • 00:12:36
    him there and
  • 00:12:41
    then Mark had been picked up by another
  • 00:12:44
    member of the Conor
  • 00:12:46
    family he was driven to a traveler site
  • 00:12:49
    called Green Acres on the outskirts of
  • 00:12:52
    the market town of Leon
  • 00:12:54
    Buzzard this site belongs to Tommy
  • 00:12:56
    Connor a cousin of Billy and Bre
  • 00:13:02
    done it wasn't until the next day that I
  • 00:13:05
    noticed that anything was particularly
  • 00:13:09
    [Music]
  • 00:13:11
    wrong the other workers at the site were
  • 00:13:14
    living in a horse
  • 00:13:16
    box it would have been about eight
  • 00:13:18
    living in a horse box which had kind of
  • 00:13:20
    wooden bunks built into the side of it
  • 00:13:23
    you've seen the pictures of um kind of
  • 00:13:25
    the concentration camps the long tunnel
  • 00:13:27
    like barracks and it looked exactly like
  • 00:13:29
    like that inside it wasn't just the
  • 00:13:31
    living conditions that troubled him but
  • 00:13:34
    the inmates
  • 00:13:35
    themselves people would have their head
  • 00:13:37
    shaved everybody at the site had a
  • 00:13:39
    shaved
  • 00:13:40
    head this ritual was carried out by one
  • 00:13:43
    of the other long serving workers I've
  • 00:13:46
    done it and had to do it to people cut
  • 00:13:48
    the a to you come the bully as part of
  • 00:13:51
    the initiation the new recruit's own
  • 00:13:54
    clothes would be taken
  • 00:13:55
    [Music]
  • 00:13:56
    away the all you out please and go
  • 00:14:02
    water any documents any mobile phones
  • 00:14:06
    anything like that anything valuable
  • 00:14:07
    would be taken
  • 00:14:08
    away when I was first picked up my house
  • 00:14:12
    keys and my mobile phone disappeared
  • 00:14:15
    it's took all your ID and everything to
  • 00:14:18
    know
  • 00:14:19
    that you didn't
  • 00:14:23
    exist there was one outside tap for the
  • 00:14:27
    workers to use cold water only and this
  • 00:14:29
    is approaching winter now so it's not
  • 00:14:31
    ideal
  • 00:14:32
    at most of them hadn't showered or
  • 00:14:35
    cleaned themselves for a couple of
  • 00:14:37
    months at
  • 00:14:39
    least there was a kind of a small
  • 00:14:42
    outside toilet that didn't
  • 00:14:44
    work you have to go over the wall to
  • 00:14:47
    have a car you know what I mean you
  • 00:14:49
    should you know what I mean you don't
  • 00:14:50
    wipe your
  • 00:14:55
    ass so this is Green Acres
  • 00:14:59
    it's an odd feeling to be back here um I
  • 00:15:02
    spent what was the worst period of my
  • 00:15:04
    life
  • 00:15:06
    here I was definitely kept a
  • 00:15:09
    prisoner there weren't any locked Gates
  • 00:15:11
    or bars or anything like that but I was
  • 00:15:14
    it was made very very clear that if I
  • 00:15:16
    was to go out if I was to try to leave
  • 00:15:19
    then the consequences would be pretty
  • 00:15:22
    grave I've seen some se you punch people
  • 00:15:25
    kick people push people around threaten
  • 00:15:28
    people's lives
  • 00:15:29
    frequently i s many a time it with
  • 00:15:33
    somewhere or
  • 00:15:36
    kicked he said if you ever escape the
  • 00:15:39
    lot we'll find you we'll find you killed
  • 00:15:41
    you and he could have bed you at the
  • 00:15:43
    back of the
  • 00:15:44
    fields so was it worth
  • 00:15:49
    escaping you don't really see Escape as
  • 00:15:52
    an option you know that wherever you go
  • 00:15:55
    you're going to be found here I'm some
  • 00:15:57
    120 130 m from hope uh didn't have any
  • 00:16:00
    money in my pocket um didn't have any
  • 00:16:03
    reason to suspect that the authorities
  • 00:16:05
    would take me seriously if I went to
  • 00:16:06
    them um so where was I going to go i'
  • 00:16:08
    leave here and have to walk any number
  • 00:16:10
    of miles in any direction I'm going to
  • 00:16:12
    be fairly easy to pick up
  • 00:16:14
    again in July
  • 00:16:17
    2011 two workers did not to escape while
  • 00:16:20
    out canvasing for work and went to the
  • 00:16:24
    police I went
  • 00:16:26
    Camp campus all day and I didn't get one
  • 00:16:32
    customer um he punched me in the aisle
  • 00:16:36
    as hard as he
  • 00:16:38
    could because you're useless not punch
  • 00:16:41
    me in the arm put me in the boot of the
  • 00:16:43
    car it was
  • 00:16:49
    darked not
  • 00:16:51
    [Music]
  • 00:16:52
    very he told us of incidents of of
  • 00:16:56
    beatings and mistreatment people were
  • 00:16:59
    being starved and that if anybody did
  • 00:17:02
    try to escape they would be beaten and
  • 00:17:05
    even killed they said if you try leave
  • 00:17:09
    get to murder
  • 00:17:12
    you and he then says that there's
  • 00:17:14
    another man in the area doing the same
  • 00:17:18
    who's been held against his will for
  • 00:17:21
    over 7
  • 00:17:23
    years when the police found him he said
  • 00:17:27
    nah everything's fine
  • 00:17:29
    the corners are my best friend's name
  • 00:17:32
    they're like my
  • 00:17:34
    parents I've enjoyed life for the last
  • 00:17:37
    seven
  • 00:17:38
    years I'm off the I'm off the
  • 00:17:41
    alcohol thanks to them we've got some
  • 00:17:43
    information to suggest that you're
  • 00:17:45
    beaten
  • 00:17:46
    regularly not
  • 00:17:48
    really few
  • 00:17:50
    slaps why would any I'm not why would
  • 00:17:53
    anyone slap
  • 00:17:54
    you maybe I deserve it why would you
  • 00:17:57
    deserve it I don't know oh maybe I do
  • 00:17:59
    deserve it so they had two different
  • 00:18:03
    accounts and this is what we knew we
  • 00:18:06
    would face throughout the investigation
  • 00:18:09
    people that would say yeah everything
  • 00:18:12
    was fine because they're that vulnerable
  • 00:18:15
    there was no barbed wire there was no um
  • 00:18:19
    Fen in there was no need because they
  • 00:18:23
    were all
  • 00:18:24
    brainwashed anyway 7 years
  • 00:18:30
    my life has been
  • 00:18:33
    [Music]
  • 00:18:38
    fantastic in September
  • 00:18:41
    2011 200 police officers descended on
  • 00:18:44
    the Connor's site at Green
  • 00:18:46
    Acres I see two Caravans in a van and
  • 00:18:50
    uncovered a world of squala and horror
  • 00:18:53
    regular access to the you had these poor
  • 00:18:56
    people in pitiful dress
  • 00:18:59
    thin pale teeth missing filthy
  • 00:19:04
    Dirty Heads down broken
  • 00:19:08
    men the only clothing they had was what
  • 00:19:11
    they were
  • 00:19:13
    wearing some had
  • 00:19:16
    scurvy one guy was covered from head to
  • 00:19:20
    foot in his own
  • 00:19:22
    intrument it was the most dire
  • 00:19:25
    disgusting place you could ever wish to
  • 00:19:28
    live in
  • 00:19:28
    [Music]
  • 00:19:31
    in they had to have The Travelers cats
  • 00:19:34
    and kittens living in there with
  • 00:19:36
    them cats were urinating and defecating
  • 00:19:39
    in there and they had to live in there
  • 00:19:42
    and you see the poo on the floor and you
  • 00:19:43
    see that they they're living amongst
  • 00:19:46
    that it's just terrific
  • 00:19:51
    really these conditions were in stark
  • 00:19:54
    contrast to the Connor's homes just a
  • 00:19:56
    few meters away
  • 00:20:01
    people would refer to it as
  • 00:20:06
    palatial really nice kitchens sparkling
  • 00:20:09
    clean often unused with crystal in the
  • 00:20:13
    in in the ovens to show how clean and
  • 00:20:15
    tidy it was luxury
  • 00:20:20
    everywhere when we searched the Caravans
  • 00:20:22
    there was a stacking like steer set cash
  • 00:20:25
    in the bottom part of the pan and
  • 00:20:26
    there's a a baby bag stuff with
  • 00:20:29
    lots of Ready Cash lying around we're
  • 00:20:31
    talking thousands in the pot we're not
  • 00:20:33
    talking a few pennies or 100 quid or
  • 00:20:36
    so by the end of the raid officers had
  • 00:20:39
    rescued 22
  • 00:20:42
    men that was one of the greatest days of
  • 00:20:44
    my
  • 00:20:46
    life who was the world just stopped it
  • 00:20:49
    went and the air smell smells different
  • 00:20:53
    that's how good he
  • 00:20:56
    was but for others freedom after years
  • 00:20:59
    of mental imprisonment was not
  • 00:21:03
    welcome some people still refus to
  • 00:21:07
    leave this man had been with the Connors
  • 00:21:10
    for 20 years they Reon I was a slave
  • 00:21:13
    yeah so do they question you about your
  • 00:21:16
    involvement here they they tried to
  • 00:21:18
    question me but I told them that I'm not
  • 00:21:19
    going into an interview there's no
  • 00:21:21
    slaves
  • 00:21:22
    here if they were slaves they would go
  • 00:21:25
    people go and come when they want
  • 00:21:28
    there's no slaves
  • 00:21:30
    here five members of Tommy Connor's
  • 00:21:33
    family were arrested and charged with
  • 00:21:37
    slavery did you ever offer any violence
  • 00:21:40
    to them did you beat them or Com or
  • 00:21:45
    injure them in any way no can anything
  • 00:21:48
    that you want to comment on at all
  • 00:21:50
    Patrick and what I'm doing in this
  • 00:21:52
    police station work hard for living
  • 00:21:54
    though do only think wrong it's just
  • 00:21:56
    another thing to get back at our family
  • 00:21:57
    again what do you what do you work hard
  • 00:21:59
    doing living the interview is over now
  • 00:22:02
    just concluded what I have to say that's
  • 00:22:05
    no the human beings that have to live in
  • 00:22:07
    that they should tell you that shouldn't
  • 00:22:10
    they well did you not tell them to I
  • 00:22:14
    can't force people to do things you
  • 00:22:16
    force them to go out and work for you
  • 00:22:19
    forc
  • 00:22:20
    them four members of Tommy Connor's
  • 00:22:23
    family were convicted of slavery and
  • 00:22:26
    sentenced to a total of 28 years in in
  • 00:22:30
    prison Billy and breeda Connors and
  • 00:22:33
    three of their family were jailed for
  • 00:22:35
    nearly 19 years in total they were also
  • 00:22:39
    ordered to pay2 and A4 million
  • 00:22:42
    immediately when you see the UNS with
  • 00:22:45
    the red bow down
  • 00:22:48
    guilt and you knew my time has
  • 00:22:54
    come for the family of Christopher
  • 00:22:57
    Nichols who Leal remains sparked the
  • 00:23:00
    initial
  • 00:23:01
    investigation there is no
  • 00:23:03
    closure the police were unable to find
  • 00:23:06
    any evidence to link his death to Billy
  • 00:23:09
    Connor Billy Connor said he'd given him
  • 00:23:11
    50 and sent him on his
  • 00:23:14
    way my own view is that Christopher was
  • 00:23:17
    no longer of any use to Billy Connor
  • 00:23:19
    because of the physical injuries that
  • 00:23:20
    he' sustained and Billy threw him out to
  • 00:23:23
    fend for himself and I think Christopher
  • 00:23:24
    would have had the clothes he stood up
  • 00:23:26
    in there was a people take in and if you
  • 00:23:30
    couldn't use them any longer perhaps
  • 00:23:32
    they were G past the C by day where work
  • 00:23:35
    was concerned they would be flighted
  • 00:23:37
    yeah basically take take to any part of
  • 00:23:40
    the country and just dump
  • 00:23:42
    [Music]
  • 00:23:43
    there we do have his children and it's
  • 00:23:47
    very sad really that they've had to
  • 00:23:49
    suffer in such a
  • 00:23:52
    way we don't believe that we'll get
  • 00:23:54
    Justice for the death of Christopher
  • 00:24:00
    [Music]
  • 00:24:01
    the cause of Christopher's death remains
  • 00:24:03
    a
  • 00:24:05
    mystery but without it many of his
  • 00:24:08
    co-workers would never have gained their
  • 00:24:10
    freedom what would you say to Chris if
  • 00:24:12
    he was still here I
  • 00:24:15
    probably put my arms around him when I H
  • 00:24:21
    him I can't thank him enough really
  • 00:24:28
    thank
  • 00:24:28
    [Music]
  • 00:24:35
    you four members of Tommy Connor's
  • 00:24:38
    family may be behind bars but for many
  • 00:24:40
    of their victims the fear remains it's
  • 00:24:43
    been six years since Mark endon escape
  • 00:24:46
    from their clutches but he still doesn't
  • 00:24:49
    feel safe I went into the center of town
  • 00:24:51
    one day and I was about to cross a road
  • 00:24:53
    I was standing at a pedestrian Crossing
  • 00:24:55
    and a white Transit family pulled up
  • 00:24:58
    next to me there was a redheaded guy who
  • 00:25:01
    sat in the driver's seat and I panicked
  • 00:25:03
    and ran
  • 00:25:04
    off I still couldn't shake the feeling
  • 00:25:07
    that anything could happen at any
  • 00:25:10
    point what happened to the Connor's
  • 00:25:12
    victims is not an isolative
  • 00:25:15
    case Every Day in the UK people are
  • 00:25:18
    being targeted by slave drivers this is
  • 00:25:21
    very much the tip of the iceberg this
  • 00:25:24
    isn't a traveler crime this is something
  • 00:25:27
    that's happening everywhere in the
  • 00:25:30
    UK in 21st century Britain slavery has
  • 00:25:34
    taken roote in every town in city in
  • 00:25:37
    June 2016 the high court found that a
  • 00:25:40
    subcontractor used slaves to catch
  • 00:25:43
    chickens for a leading supplier of eggs
  • 00:25:45
    to High Street stores unbeknown to the
  • 00:25:48
    supplier or
  • 00:25:51
    retailer lately Britain's Nail Bar
  • 00:25:54
    industry has come under scrutiny we've
  • 00:25:56
    seen a massive growth in the last 2
  • 00:25:57
    years nail bus popping up up and down
  • 00:25:59
    the High Street you can get your nails
  • 00:26:02
    done for £10 but you can only pay in
  • 00:26:04
    cash the person that's doing your nails
  • 00:26:06
    can't speak any English and often what
  • 00:26:08
    we're beginning to find is that they're
  • 00:26:10
    held there against their will they're in
  • 00:26:12
    forc labor situation and they're often
  • 00:26:14
    in bonded debt to their slave masters so
  • 00:26:17
    the question is who's doing your nails
  • 00:26:19
    are your nails being done by
  • 00:26:20
    [Music]
  • 00:26:23
    slaves many nail salons are starved by
  • 00:26:26
    trafficked Vietnamese who are being
  • 00:26:28
    lured here with the promise of well-paid
  • 00:26:31
    jobs a favorite destination is
  • 00:26:35
    Scotland the police here now carry out
  • 00:26:37
    spot checks on nail bars across the
  • 00:26:43
    country this customer is bemused by the
  • 00:26:46
    sudden police
  • 00:26:48
    presence do you come here often um I've
  • 00:26:51
    come here a couple of times yeah your
  • 00:26:52
    friends come here as well any concerns
  • 00:26:55
    um I think you get done yeah change over
  • 00:26:59
    the
  • 00:27:00
    staff my yeah yeah okay had a few
  • 00:27:03
    different people com in yeah okay all
  • 00:27:06
    right I've got officers out you mind if
  • 00:27:08
    you just have a quick chat with you just
  • 00:27:10
    very very briefly okay thank
  • 00:27:13
    you one of the team has spotted a new
  • 00:27:16
    worker in the corner of the shop who has
  • 00:27:18
    raised his suspicions nice um we're just
  • 00:27:21
    going to go into this office and I just
  • 00:27:23
    want to have a very brief uh chat with
  • 00:27:25
    you hi how you doing thanks
  • 00:27:31
    how did you what was your
  • 00:27:40
    [Music]
  • 00:27:45
    journey do you know who we
  • 00:27:48
    are he doesn't really remember exactly
  • 00:27:51
    the address no we could meet people and
  • 00:27:54
    they don't know that simple question of
  • 00:27:56
    where they actually are is horrendous
  • 00:27:57
    they don't speak
  • 00:27:59
    any um English at all so they have no
  • 00:28:02
    understanding um of what situation
  • 00:28:04
    they're in or how to get themselves out
  • 00:28:06
    of that situation can you ask him who
  • 00:28:08
    has his identity
  • 00:28:15
    C I never have any identity card do you
  • 00:28:19
    P
  • 00:28:20
    enough yes
  • 00:28:30
    can you ask him if he owes any
  • 00:28:33
    money not much not much how
  • 00:28:37
    much okay and you the boy is just 16
  • 00:28:42
    he's worried that he said too much and
  • 00:28:44
    he's going to be
  • 00:28:48
    deported I to change I don't want to
  • 00:28:51
    change
  • 00:28:52
    [Music]
  • 00:28:55
    anything the boy was taken to a place
  • 00:28:58
    place of
  • 00:29:04
    safety police police Scottish police
  • 00:29:08
    Tracked Down the owner of the Nail Bar
  • 00:29:10
    to a London suburb 420 M
  • 00:29:15
    away in September he was convicted of
  • 00:29:19
    trafficking offenses and was sentenced
  • 00:29:21
    to 12 months in prison
  • 00:29:28
    the plight of Migrant workers of all
  • 00:29:30
    nationalities is echoed in towns in
  • 00:29:33
    rural areas across
  • 00:29:34
    [Music]
  • 00:29:36
    Britain 3:00 a.m.
  • 00:29:39
    Cambridge 300 crime officers are about
  • 00:29:42
    to raid properties in whis
  • 00:29:45
    Beach they're targeting illegal gang
  • 00:29:48
    Masters who exploit migrants desperate
  • 00:29:50
    for
  • 00:29:54
    work come on come on get get in there
  • 00:29:58
    come on
  • 00:30:01
    pleas every day before Dawn in whis
  • 00:30:04
    Beach a modern British ritual plays
  • 00:30:07
    out Eastern Europeans Gather in the Town
  • 00:30:11
    Center looking for a day's
  • 00:30:13
    work wh Beach as a town is always
  • 00:30:16
    attracted migrant workers because of the
  • 00:30:18
    type of work that's available it's
  • 00:30:21
    largely agricultureal it's largely hard
  • 00:30:23
    labor on minimum pay and the indigenous
  • 00:30:26
    populations just not being attracted to
  • 00:30:28
    that type of
  • 00:30:30
    work these are the lucky ones they're
  • 00:30:33
    picked up by legal gang Masters the work
  • 00:30:36
    is tough but they're paid the going rate
  • 00:30:39
    and it's all above
  • 00:30:40
    [Music]
  • 00:30:43
    board across the road it's a different
  • 00:30:47
    story there's a parallel operation with
  • 00:30:50
    ruthless illegal gang Masters exploiting
  • 00:30:53
    migrants for little or no
  • 00:30:56
    pay this is where an Eastern European
  • 00:30:59
    crime gang picked up its
  • 00:31:02
    workers National Crime okay in their
  • 00:31:07
    raids crime officers find 80 workers who
  • 00:31:10
    were taken away to
  • 00:31:13
    safety harm your defense if you do not
  • 00:31:15
    mention when question
  • 00:31:16
    something they also arrest nine members
  • 00:31:19
    of organized crime
  • 00:31:26
    gangs among them they get one of their
  • 00:31:28
    targets laan man Evar me
  • 00:31:38
    hone just dress me
  • 00:31:43
    [Music]
  • 00:31:49
    up this was the end of a year-long
  • 00:31:52
    investigation by Cambridge Police
  • 00:31:54
    targeting a crime gang led by mezel and
  • 00:31:57
    Urus value
  • 00:31:58
    and including Val's wife Oxana and her
  • 00:32:01
    friend LMA
  • 00:32:03
    Vancover iva's misss was extremely
  • 00:32:06
    calculating he was really able to
  • 00:32:09
    understand vulnerability to identify
  • 00:32:11
    those that could be
  • 00:32:12
    [Music]
  • 00:32:15
    exploited okay so this is the exhibits
  • 00:32:18
    room here we have some
  • 00:32:21
    adverts which were found at uh the home
  • 00:32:24
    addresses and they're written in Russian
  • 00:32:26
    um and they've translated to workers
  • 00:32:29
    required to work cabbages potatoes and
  • 00:32:31
    flowers and the two telephone numbers
  • 00:32:33
    there refer to value and
  • 00:32:39
    mezel the adverts were placed in shops
  • 00:32:42
    and on social network sites designed to
  • 00:32:45
    Target Eastern Europeans dreaming of a
  • 00:32:47
    better life mezel was guaranteeing each
  • 00:32:50
    individual work if you come from an area
  • 00:32:53
    where work isn't available you don't
  • 00:32:55
    have good living accommodation come to
  • 00:32:57
    me in whis beach and I'm going to
  • 00:32:59
    guarantee you good employment regular
  • 00:33:02
    employment above the minimum pay you're
  • 00:33:04
    also going to get accommodation it's
  • 00:33:05
    going to be good accommodation and I'm
  • 00:33:07
    going to look after your
  • 00:33:10
    interests the reality was very
  • 00:33:13
    different workers were crowded into
  • 00:33:15
    dilapidated homes for which mezel
  • 00:33:18
    charged extortion at
  • 00:33:21
    rents we entered here at 4:00 this
  • 00:33:23
    morning and we found seven males and one
  • 00:33:26
    female
  • 00:33:28
    when we were letting through the back
  • 00:33:29
    door there was two males actually asleep
  • 00:33:33
    sitting down with the feet up on each of
  • 00:33:35
    these chairs here um they would just
  • 00:33:40
    slept there they had literally only just
  • 00:33:43
    arrived they' been just literally
  • 00:33:45
    dropped off by someone and saying this
  • 00:33:47
    is where you're staying drop them off
  • 00:33:48
    and then drove off first bedroom you got
  • 00:33:52
    damp going all the way along the top all
  • 00:33:53
    the way around and if you look you can
  • 00:33:56
    see the discoloration
  • 00:33:58
    on the
  • 00:34:01
    wall damp all behind the beds it's
  • 00:34:04
    coming all the way out the plaz is
  • 00:34:05
    actually coming away from the
  • 00:34:07
    wall and and that's somebody's head um
  • 00:34:11
    steeping right next to it which I
  • 00:34:13
    wouldn't think it's going to be very
  • 00:34:15
    good for your
  • 00:34:16
    [Music]
  • 00:34:20
    health it seems that people been
  • 00:34:22
    exploited it's quite a nerve and really
  • 00:34:24
    that this is going on so close to home
  • 00:34:28
    mezel and the Gang sublet ate such
  • 00:34:31
    houses generating around £10,000 a month
  • 00:34:34
    in
  • 00:34:35
    rent but it wasn't enough he also
  • 00:34:38
    overcharged for transport to the fields
  • 00:34:40
    and factories where migrants would find
  • 00:34:43
    that the promised work just wasn't
  • 00:34:46
    there but they still owed mezel for
  • 00:34:48
    their transport and rent and now they
  • 00:34:51
    were in his
  • 00:34:53
    debt over here we have one of the debt
  • 00:34:56
    books that we seized from mezel it was
  • 00:34:59
    actually in his car now inside as an
  • 00:35:02
    example you'll see rent transport and
  • 00:35:06
    debts recorded within this book okay
  • 00:35:08
    this is a transport column so there's
  • 00:35:11
    dates at the top here um and you can see
  • 00:35:14
    that one person has been charged £8 a
  • 00:35:17
    day for transport somebody else is £7 so
  • 00:35:20
    they're earning very low amounts of
  • 00:35:22
    money and if you add up the money that
  • 00:35:25
    they they earned and you take away the
  • 00:35:27
    rent and you take away the transport and
  • 00:35:30
    you take away what mesel says was a debt
  • 00:35:33
    they were left with a pittance very
  • 00:35:34
    often at the end of that sometimes Pence
  • 00:35:36
    sometimes nothing at all um and ear
  • 00:35:39
    nothing for all of their
  • 00:35:44
    effort during the course of their
  • 00:35:46
    investigation Cambridge Police
  • 00:35:49
    discovered that mezel and the Gang
  • 00:35:51
    ruthlessly exploited their workers for
  • 00:35:55
    profit once the workers were in debt
  • 00:35:59
    basically having no earnings at all
  • 00:36:01
    worried about keeping the roof over
  • 00:36:02
    their head and where their next meal was
  • 00:36:04
    going to come from they do essentially
  • 00:36:06
    whatever they were asked to do they were
  • 00:36:07
    asked to go with their gang to Banks and
  • 00:36:10
    building societies and told they were
  • 00:36:12
    going to be opening bank accounts the
  • 00:36:14
    gang themselves acted as interpreter and
  • 00:36:16
    convinced the bank that they were just
  • 00:36:17
    there to assist their friends and
  • 00:36:19
    colleagues when the bank accounts were
  • 00:36:21
    opened they went immediately into the
  • 00:36:23
    control of the gang and were used by the
  • 00:36:25
    gang to launder money on one occasion a
  • 00:36:28
    young lady we worked with throughout the
  • 00:36:30
    trial called Santa identified that more
  • 00:36:32
    than £1,000 had gone through her account
  • 00:36:35
    so she confronted valv and valev
  • 00:36:38
    essentially told her not to ask
  • 00:36:40
    questions and he said um that he would
  • 00:36:42
    finish her off the gang singled out
  • 00:36:45
    female workers for more Sinister
  • 00:36:48
    exploitation women in particular are
  • 00:36:50
    very valuable commodity for the gang
  • 00:36:53
    they could use them to enter them into
  • 00:36:55
    sham weddings or they could push them
  • 00:36:57
    toward prostitution they also threatened
  • 00:36:59
    them with much more serious things like
  • 00:37:01
    if you don't pay me back you can sell an
  • 00:37:04
    organ which then made the Sham weddings
  • 00:37:06
    and prostitution sound far less scary
  • 00:37:09
    and one of our victims in particular she
  • 00:37:11
    was coerced into going to India where on
  • 00:37:14
    her return after marrying somebody in
  • 00:37:17
    India was told by the gang you're no
  • 00:37:19
    further used to us you've cleared your
  • 00:37:21
    debt and they evicted her and her
  • 00:37:23
    children from the
  • 00:37:26
    house over the course of two trials
  • 00:37:29
    mezel and valuev were finally
  • 00:37:32
    convicted first they were found guilty
  • 00:37:35
    of operating as illegal gang
  • 00:37:38
    Masters don't drop it then in May 2016
  • 00:37:42
    all four gang members were convicted of
  • 00:37:45
    conspiracy to acquire criminal
  • 00:37:48
    property three of the four were also
  • 00:37:50
    jailed for arranging sham
  • 00:37:53
    marriages the gang was sentenced to 26
  • 00:37:56
    years in prison
  • 00:37:58
    but other criminal groups are still
  • 00:37:59
    working the area cambridgea police are
  • 00:38:03
    currently investigating six other cases
  • 00:38:06
    involving labor
  • 00:38:08
    exploitation today officers are on their
  • 00:38:11
    way to check on the gang's former
  • 00:38:14
    workers following the police
  • 00:38:16
    investigation many found themselves
  • 00:38:20
    homeless we're now on route to an
  • 00:38:22
    encampment initially when we first met
  • 00:38:24
    them they wouldn't tell us who they were
  • 00:38:26
    working for
  • 00:38:28
    they are very much afraid of mentioning
  • 00:38:30
    um Evas and uh uri's name very fearful
  • 00:38:35
    to talk about them for Fe
  • 00:38:43
    reprisals the makeshift Camp is situated
  • 00:38:47
    just yards from a busy Main
  • 00:38:49
    Road the conditions are
  • 00:38:52
    [Music]
  • 00:38:55
    squalid the living area here here
  • 00:38:58
    undercover um with their chairs got a
  • 00:39:01
    little table and their
  • 00:39:04
    [Music]
  • 00:39:07
    drinks this is the uh the red carpet
  • 00:39:09
    that leads to the uh the toilet area um
  • 00:39:13
    it's a bit of a makeshift uh toilet be
  • 00:39:15
    made made out of tires not the most
  • 00:39:17
    comfortable but um it's out of the way
  • 00:39:19
    from the main
  • 00:39:21
    Camp there are three people huddled
  • 00:39:23
    under a Tarpin tent that barely protects
  • 00:39:26
    them from the elements hello there's no
  • 00:39:30
    problems we're just checking that you're
  • 00:39:31
    okay cuz it's been a cold night we just
  • 00:39:32
    want to check
  • 00:39:36
    [Music]
  • 00:39:37
    you please can you leave us alone we
  • 00:39:40
    really we we're not touching anyone
  • 00:39:42
    would you please leave listen in
  • 00:39:44
    peace they're initially reluctant to
  • 00:39:47
    talk to the police they only agreed to
  • 00:39:50
    speak on the assurance that we would
  • 00:39:52
    hide their identities you in the past
  • 00:39:54
    have told us that you've had problems
  • 00:39:55
    with people or with money being taken
  • 00:39:57
    from your
  • 00:40:02
    pay this man worked for another illegal
  • 00:40:05
    gang
  • 00:40:06
    Master they told me I had
  • 00:40:09
    to I had to pay money
  • 00:40:12
    [Music]
  • 00:40:14
    today they were taking
  • 00:40:18
    £500 you work for EUR and for Eva's me
  • 00:40:27
    no
  • 00:40:29
    problems every day I driving
  • 00:40:32
    [Music]
  • 00:40:33
    cars
  • 00:40:40
    Europe every day we've had
  • 00:40:45
    work everything's
  • 00:40:48
    fine thank
  • 00:40:50
    Youk Mel's gang may be in prison but the
  • 00:40:54
    workers are still afraid of them what
  • 00:40:57
    has gotten out that if there's a camera
  • 00:40:59
    then you you fully support Evas and and
  • 00:41:02
    and
  • 00:41:04
    Uris it's just amazing that in in 21st
  • 00:41:07
    century Britain we we've got people
  • 00:41:09
    living in
  • 00:41:12
    tents it's outrageous and there's people
  • 00:41:14
    profiteering from it um and making the
  • 00:41:17
    vast vast sums of amount of money whilst
  • 00:41:19
    other people are left in in these
  • 00:41:21
    conditions um it's words fail me really
  • 00:41:32
    [Music]
  • 00:41:35
    every night on the Streets of London as
  • 00:41:37
    in our other major cities organized
  • 00:41:40
    crime gangs Target vulnerable men and
  • 00:41:42
    women for slave
  • 00:41:45
    labor I'm out tonight to warn their
  • 00:41:48
    homeless that they're at risk of
  • 00:41:50
    becoming victims of human
  • 00:41:52
    trafficking hiy how are you charity
  • 00:41:55
    worker Megan Stewart used to be homeless
  • 00:41:58
    herself she's made it her mission to
  • 00:42:00
    spread the word about the trafficking
  • 00:42:02
    gangs who lie in weight the situation on
  • 00:42:05
    the streets is definitely getting worse
  • 00:42:06
    than what it's been the reason
  • 00:42:09
    traffickers seem to be targeting the
  • 00:42:10
    homeless at the moment is because
  • 00:42:12
    obviously it costs money to come in h
  • 00:42:15
    from Europe to the UK why bring people
  • 00:42:18
    in when they're already here at the sou
  • 00:42:21
    runs I'm here yeah because the free food
  • 00:42:26
    banks were you guys are accumulating are
  • 00:42:29
    being targeted by human traffickers if
  • 00:42:32
    you could give me the details of any
  • 00:42:34
    vans or suspicious people I hear couple
  • 00:42:37
    of months ago uh they took them some
  • 00:42:40
    couple of the guys somewhere like yes I
  • 00:42:46
    seen the traffickers have learned about
  • 00:42:48
    the suuns and they've also learned the
  • 00:42:50
    RoR of the super runs where the suuns
  • 00:42:52
    are going to be who's going to be at
  • 00:42:54
    those super runs and the basically from
  • 00:42:57
    a candy store for the
  • 00:43:00
    traffickers the more vulnerable they are
  • 00:43:02
    the more likely they are to be targeted
  • 00:43:04
    so if you don't speak any English if
  • 00:43:07
    you're looking for lawn or you're a drug
  • 00:43:09
    addict or alcoholic that's the type of
  • 00:43:12
    person that the traffickers looking for
  • 00:43:14
    someone that's not going to be
  • 00:43:15
    [Music]
  • 00:43:20
    missed they go out they say to them um I
  • 00:43:23
    was sitting in this queue last week
  • 00:43:26
    these these guys came along they offered
  • 00:43:28
    me work and accommodation I've not
  • 00:43:30
    looked back me it and they've got a
  • 00:43:32
    couple of openings so you know the the
  • 00:43:34
    guys because they're cold because
  • 00:43:36
    they're hungry Think Jesus great get in
  • 00:43:39
    the van and that's that's
  • 00:43:40
    [Music]
  • 00:43:46
    it there are takers for these offers as
  • 00:43:49
    Megan hears from a homeless
  • 00:43:52
    girl C in a car last week who did a CLE
  • 00:43:58
    guy and they go off work and
  • 00:44:01
    accomodation and they go the
  • 00:44:03
    car no one and you've not seen them
  • 00:44:06
    since please be careful have you ever
  • 00:44:09
    been approached yourself I by it I we
  • 00:44:12
    knew it was a scam we just went now
  • 00:44:14
    forget it man you know I mean we are not
  • 00:44:15
    interested we know what happens when
  • 00:44:17
    people go with the likes of you as I say
  • 00:44:19
    end up in a shallow grave somewhere the
  • 00:44:21
    worst case scenario right indeed it's
  • 00:44:24
    not just a British problem the UN says
  • 00:44:27
    the slave trade is a huge money-making
  • 00:44:30
    Global
  • 00:44:31
    Enterprise it's $150 billion a year
  • 00:44:36
    industry $150
  • 00:44:40
    billion this is serious organized crime
  • 00:44:43
    on a scale the world hasn't seen
  • 00:44:46
    before drugs are massive huge industry
  • 00:44:50
    but you can only sell drugs once people
  • 00:44:52
    can get sold over and over and over
  • 00:44:55
    again
  • 00:44:59
    [Music]
  • 00:45:02
    with new modern slavery legislation
  • 00:45:04
    inforce the Prime Minister Theresa May
  • 00:45:07
    has made it her mission to crack down on
  • 00:45:09
    the slave masters it's a huge
  • 00:45:13
    challenge people tend to be very
  • 00:45:15
    comfortable with where they are and they
  • 00:45:16
    tend to forget that it doesn't really
  • 00:45:19
    take much for your life to take a
  • 00:45:20
    downturn it doesn't take much for you to
  • 00:45:22
    lose a home or you know lose a job or
  • 00:45:24
    become depressed or whatever I just
  • 00:45:27
    happened to be one of those unlucky
  • 00:45:28
    people that that it happened to it could
  • 00:45:30
    happen to anybody
  • 00:45:33
    anybody it's just become so commercial
  • 00:45:36
    it's come so entrepreneurial so it's
  • 00:45:38
    almost starting to embed itself at such
  • 00:45:40
    a low level that it's become normal um
  • 00:45:44
    we have to change
  • 00:45:46
    [Music]
  • 00:45:48
    attitudes however big we think the
  • 00:45:50
    problem is I don't think it's naive to
  • 00:45:51
    think that we can end modern slavery in
  • 00:45:53
    our lifetime but it comes down to each
  • 00:45:55
    and every one of us so when we go
  • 00:45:57
    shopping who made the product who's
  • 00:45:59
    serving us who's cleaning our car who's
  • 00:46:02
    doing our nails who's tarmacking our
  • 00:46:04
    drives and we just need to stop and ask
  • 00:46:05
    ourselves do we want to live in a world
  • 00:46:08
    still built on the back of slavery
  • 00:46:18
    [Music]
  • 00:46:29
    [Laughter]
  • 00:46:31
    [Music]
Tags
  • modern slavery
  • UK
  • slavery investigation
  • Christopher Nichols
  • labor exploitation
  • Connors family
  • human trafficking
  • migrant workers
  • anti-slavery legislation
  • organized crime