The workers would have been forced to accept low wages and exploitative conditions as they were in need
During the preliminary investigations, the State Police carried out eight personal precautionary measures issued, at the request of the Public Prosecutor's Office of Caltanissetta, by the Judge for Preliminary Investigations. One of the suspects was placed under house arrest, another was forced to reside in the city of Delia and other farm owners were banned for 1 year from carrying on business. The investigations began in May 2022 following some reports received by the Flying Squad. From listening to some Pakistani citizens, it emerged that an Italian man recruited non-EU workers every morning at 5.00 near the Caltanissetta station to take them to the countryside of Delia and Agrigento to work.
The policemen of the mobile team, coordinated by the Public Prosecutor's Office, actually found that every day one of the suspects, in competition with another Italian subject, would have recruited dozens of workers to be taken to the countryside. The investigative activity made it possible to collect serious indications of guilt held by the GIP against 8 suspects, of which 6 agricultural entrepreneurs who daily required workforce, mainly from outside the EU, in order to employ it on the so-called black on their farms. During the complex investigation activity, several checks were carried out on the farms concerned. The workers, interviewed by the investigators of the Flying Squad, declared that they received low daily wages for 8 hours of work per day, provided in the absence of safety conditions in the workplace.
Again according to what was declared by the workers, the latter were forced to accept the conditions of exploitation as they were in a state of need. During one of the checks carried out in Caltanissetta it was possible to ascertain that one of the suspects was transporting the workers in the absence of any safety regulations, since he had modified a van by preparing seats inside, without retention systems, all in order to be able recruit as many workers as possible. According to what was deemed by the GIP, two suspects would have received part of the remuneration due to the worker as compensation for the illegal intermediation activity. One of the suspects allegedly threatened the workers with death in the event of non-compliance with the rules he imposed, also forcing them to buy work tools and protective gloves. The investigative activity made it possible to monitor the alleged illegal behaviors of the months of June and July 2022. The State Police, at the first light of dawn on Monday, reached the recipients of the precautionary measure. All 8 are now available to the Judicial Authority for the future phases of the criminal proceedings.