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Trafficking a person into the UK for exploitation

A person commits an offence if she

  • arranges or facilitates  - that means makes easier  - the arrival of someone in the United Kingdom ; and
  • at that time she intends to exploit her

The prosecution say that D** arranged a false passport for C** and that she bought the airline ticket with which C** travelled to this country.  Arranging for a false passport and buying tickets are both activities which come within the phrase “arrange or facilitate”.   It is not necessary for D** herself, physically, to have bought the ticket (although it is the prosecution case that she did) or directly to have obtained the false passport.  It is sufficient for these things to have been done by an agent or someone acting on her behalf.


D** says that she did not buy the airline ticket herself, but says that X** bought the ticket.  That raises the question as to whether or not X** was acting on behalf of D** when he did this.   She says that she did not have any passport relating to C** (let alone a false one) at the time that she came to the UK . 


You must consider D**’s intention, both before and at the time when C** arrived in the UK .  What happened after her arrival is less important, because it is her intention at the time that matters, but you may draw inferences about her intention then from what happened during the time that C** was in D**’s flat.


“Exploit” means subjecting someone to force, threats or deception designed to induce her to

  • provide services of any kind; or
  • to provide another person with benefits of any kind.


The prosecution say that at that time she intended to exploit her, by deceiving her about **.

D** denies this.  She says that **.


So, the key questions for you to answer in relation to Count *, having regard to all the evidence and the directions which I give you are these

Are you sure that (i) D** made arrangements for C** to come to this country; and (ii) at the time when she did so, she deceived her, with the intention of getting her to work for her?  

If the answer to both questions is “yes”, D** is guilty of Count *.  If the answer is “no”, she is not guilty of Count *.



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