"2 arrested in Spain for exploiting agricultural migrant workers in ‘semi-slavery’", 9 November, 2023

Two men in Spain have been arrested for forcing 43 migrants to work in “semi-slavery” conditions on farms in the province of Zaragoza, police said.

One of those arrested is a leading fruit and vegetable businessman in the municipality of Mallen. The other, from Senegal, is accused of recruiting migrants from his country, police said.

Most of the victims were Senegalese, recruited either in Senegal or in Spain, and were promised jobs with “normal” labour conditions, police spokesman Ruben Nido told Aragon Noticias news...

The criminal organisation behind the human trafficking took advantage of their irregular status in Spain to make them work in “semi-slavery conditions"...

Police said they identified 15 local businesses that benefited from the labour exploitation.

The investigation started nine months ago after a routine inspection found signs of labour exploitation. They eventually uncovered signs of trafficking, falsified documents, and crimes against Spain’s labour laws...