Livestream: Police, Immigration speak about Hawke's Bay human trafficking operation

  • 17/12/2018

This livestream has now ended.

Immigration NZ (INZ) and NZ Police are holding a joint press conference in Wellington to provide more information about the discovery of a human trafficking operation in Hawke's Bay.

They will speak to media at the Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment (MBIE) office at 11:30am.

On Monday morning it was announced that a 64-year-old Samoan man had been arrested and charged with offences stretching back to the 1990s.

The arrest was the result of two years of investigative work by INZ and NZ Police.

The man, who is a New Zealand resident, allegedly brought Samoan nationals to work illegally for him in the horticultural industry on a regular basis for decades. It's alleged he would recruit workers in Samoa with the promise of well-paid jobs in the Hawke's Bay.

Victims allege they weren't paid for their work, had their passports confiscated and were threatened and physically assaulted.

They say the man also monitored and controlled their movements and restricted who they had contact with.

Newshub.