A seasonal contractor has been sent to jail for 11 years for human trafficking and slavery
A seasonal contractor has been sent to jail for 11 years for human trafficking and slavery
27 July 2020
Joseph Auga Matamata has been sentenced today at the High Court in Napier.
It's New Zealand's first dual human trafficking and slavery conviction.
Matamata holds a family chief title in Samoa, and used his status to lure workers to Hastings between 1994 and 2018.
Judge Helen Cull says victim statements showed a common thread of cultural shame - and that Matamata abused his position.
Matamata was found guilty in March to 10 human trafficking charges and 13 charges of n dealing in slaves.
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