Black Country scrapyard slavery probe finds 'malnourished' men
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27 September 2016
- From the section Birmingham & Black Country
Eleven men, including some malnourished and one with a broken shoulder, were discovered by police as part of a slavery investigation.
Officers raided two premises in the Black Country where the Polish men had allegedly been working for £1 an hour.
Police said they believed some men had been sleeping on cardboard.
Three men, aged 26, 47, and 52, were arrested suspicion of slavery offences. The Polish men were taken to a reception centre in Tipton.
West Midlands Police said a raid was carried out at CAP Recycling in Elwell Street, West Bromwich, and its sister firm, Black Country Recycling in Union Road, Oldbury, on Tuesday.
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Six of the men were found at the businesses, three were located at a flat in Market Place, Great Barr, and a further two found in a van outside one suspect's address in West Bromwich.
As well one man being injured and others appearing malnourished, police said some were showing signs of alcohol dependency.
The 52-year-old man was arrested at the Elwell Street site and the two others in connected raids at addresses in West Bromwich and Handsworth Wood.
Insp Colin Mattinson, who led the operation, said: "Suspected victims will receive medical attention and support before being spoken to by our officers with the aid of Polish interpreters."
from
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