French Police Bust Major Illegal Moroccan Farm Worker Ring, Uncover €1.6M Scheme

According to the PAF, these defendants have illegally employed nearly 250 Moroccan nationals. Through this activity, they have generated a turnover of 1.6 million euros in two years, while officially these companies had no turnover. They were created with straw men and provided agricultural services to operators in need of manpower for specific tasks such as fruit picking or vine pruning. A PAF official claims that the operators believed they were dealing with a standard company, as the defendants had documents that gave the appearance of legality.

The defendants were labor providers who did not declare their activities. In total, they brought several dozen people into French territory. They also used the services of their compatriots in an irregular situation in France and without employment. The seasonal workers were employed under different identities in several farms, reports AFP.

During their arrests on Tuesday, January 19 in Tarn-et-Garonne, 23,000 euros in cash and 30,000 euros in bank accounts as well as vehicles were seized.