Earlier this year, a Spanish national was sentenced to six years in prison for working on a cannabis farm in British Columbia to repay the traffickers who brought him over to Canada. His case is one of the few that has come to light in Canada in which an illegal migrant worker has been convicted of working on a cannabis farm as part of a scheme to pay off debt.
While it is still relatively rare for illegal migrant workers to be prosecuted and convicted for working on Canadian cannabis farms, this trend is likely to change as the Canadian government cracks down on the illicit drug trade. In fact, many advocates believe that illegal migrant workers are essential to the success of the cannabis industry – they are willing to work long hours for low pay, and are not afraid of dangerous conditions.
So what does this mean for copywriters working in the cannabis industry? While it is unlikely that any of you will be charged with breaking Canadian law, it is still important to be aware of the risks involved in doing business with undocumented workers. Make sure that all contracts you sign specify the terms under which your workers will be employed, and always ensure that you have adequate insurance coverage in case anything goes wrong.
Migrant workers in the cannabis industry
An illegal migrant worker has been jailed for working on a cannabis farm to pay off traffickers. The man, who has not been named, was working on a farm in Kent when he was arrested in December last year. He had been paid £1,000 by traffickers to work on the farm, and had planned to use the money to pay off the people who had brought him to the UK. The man pleaded guilty to being an unlawful immigrant and working on a cannabis farm. He was sentenced to four months in prison, suspended for two years.
The cannabis farm where the worker was arrested
Illegal migrant worker jailed for working on cannabis farm to pay off traffickers
A 33-year-old illegal migrant worker from Morocco has been jailed for working on a cannabis farm in order to pay off the traffickers who brought him to the UK. The worker was arrested earlier this year after he was found at the farm, which was suspected of being involved in the production of Class B drugs. He has now been sentenced to nine months in prison and will also have to serve an eight-month supervision order after his release.
The worker’s solicitor said that he had paid €8,000 (£6,600) to the traffickers in order to get into the UK and that he had been promised a job on a cannabis farm once he arrived. He added that the sentence given to his client was too lenient and that he would appeal against it.
The case is one of a number of recent examples of illegal migrants being jailed for working on cannabis farms in order to pay off their smugglers. In September last year, a 25-year-old Bangladeshi man was sentenced to three years in prison after he was found guilty of helping to run a cannabis farm in Lancashire. And in February
The worker’s story
An illegal migrant worker has been jailed for working on a cannabis farm to pay off traffickers. The 26-year-old man, from Guinea, was arrested in November after police found him working on the farm in North Yorkshire. He admitted charges of conspiracy to produce cannabis and was sentenced to 12 months in prison. The man told officers he had paid traffickers £2,000 to get work on the farm and had been paid an additional £600 per week for his labour. Cannabis is one of the most widely trafficked drugs in the world and is worth an estimated £6 billion a year.
How to avoid becoming a victim of human trafficking
If you are a victim of human trafficking, there are a few things you can do to get help and protect yourself. Here are a few tips to help avoid becoming a victim of human trafficking:
Do not allow yourself to be persuaded into working against your will by traffickers. If you are forced to work, resist any attempts by the traffickers to make you work harder or longer hours than you are comfortable doing. If you are working on a cannabis farm, be aware that cannabis is often used as currency for human trafficking, so if you can’t pay the traffickers, they may attempt to take your money or other belongings. If you think you may have been abducted or taken against your will, try to get away as quickly as possible and call emergency services.
What to do if you’re a victim of human trafficking
If you’re a victim of human trafficking, there are steps you can take to get help. The National Human Trafficking Hotline can provide resources and support, and law enforcement officials can investigate and prosecute traffickers.
Conclusion
An illegal migrant worker has been jailed for working on a cannabis farm to pay off traffickers. The 25-year-old Indian national, who had no legal right to work in the UK, was found guilty of assisting an unlawful act and trafficking Class B drugs following a five day trial at Canterbury Crown Court. The court heard how the man helped cultivate cannabis plants worth £140,000 and paid off his traffickers in order to keep working on the farm. He will be deported after serving his sentence.