A 30-year-old Moroccan living in the Italian city of Padua has been arrested for allegedly exploiting 23 migrant workers including Gambians.

According to Info Migrants, investigators discovered the migrants worked in fields in shifts of up to 15 hours a day.

The Moroccan was arrested by Venice Carabinieri police, in collaboration with labor inspectors in Padua and Carabinieri officers from Este, a town near Padua.

Investigators found that he allegedly recruited immigrants of African origin, employing them on local farms, where they were exploited,

The Gambians who were employed to pick vegetables were paid no more than €5 an hour and were employed in shifts of 10-12 hours a day, which sometimes became 15, without weekly days of rest.

Police further discovered that the boys were forced to work under the rain, in the mud, without a bathroom or a changing room, and without being allowed to take a break to eat. They also lived in overcrowded accommodation, without gas and hot water, and were forced to pay €150 a month for a bed.

Courtesy of Info Migrants