French Court Convicts Ringleaders in Agricultural Labor Exploitation Scheme

On Tuesday, the judgment in the case of human exploitation and money laundering that broke out after the dismantling of a network of hidden work in the agricultural world was handed down. After two days of trial, the Montauban (Tarn-et-Garonne) court sentenced Aziz Zaida, 47, to "three years in prison, two of which were suspended with probation," reports La Dépêche du Midi. He was also fined 30,000 euros. Oualid Rahmoni, 39, was sentenced to "two years in prison, one of which was suspended with probation," which can be arranged in the form of an electronic bracelet, and "the confiscation of the seized items, i.e. 51,000 euros".

Prosecutor Magali Bordes had requested three years in prison and fines of 150,000 euros against the two main defendants. The court also sentenced eight other defendants to sentences ranging from 12 to 18 months in prison with probation and fines between 3,000 and 5,000 euros.

Aziz Zaida and Oualid Rahmoni were identified as the masterminds of this vast social and fiscal fraud. The investigation revealed that the network mainly recruited illegal labor from Morocco for service companies in agriculture in various regions of France. In total, nearly 300 people were recruited.