- Vulnerable individuals had been trafficked from Slovakia and the Czech Republic
- Bought and sold for £200 each, their passports were then confiscated
- Tens of thousands of pounds were pocketed in claims using the victim’s names
- Gang of seven face jail when they come back before a judge tomorrow

Gang ring-leader Roman Rafael, 33 trafficked vulnerable people from Slovakia to Newcastle.
The Newcastle-based Rafael family, of Roma origin, spent their ill-gotten gains on gold and jewellery, casino trips, Mediterranean holidays and £10,000 cash on an Audi Q7 after luring vulnerable people from central Europe and forcing them to work in the UK.
Ahead of their sentencing this week, victim’s harrowing statements of their ordeals have been read to Teesside Crown Court.
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