Following a NCA investigation, six individuals were charged with forcing people to perform forced labour to staff cannabis farms. All six are accused of conspiring to facilitate workers into the UK for exploitation, and conspiring to produce cannabis.
Currently on bail, the defendants are due to appear before Birmingham Crown Court on 28 June 2024.
During an operation in 2022, the NCA unearthed a cannabis farm in an industrial unit located in Gloucestershire. Three Vietnamese nationals working at the place were suspected victims of modern slavery.
The NCA recovered and destroyed cannabis plants, which were valued in excess of £400,000.
Further details to follow.
NCA press release