Human trafficking probe at Clarendon construction site, eight chinese workers held

A Clarendon construction site has landed at the centre of a potential human trafficking probe after police swooped in and found eight Chinese nationals working illegally, alongside a contractor now facing multiple charges.

The arrest follows a coordinated operation carried out by detectives from the Transnational Crime Investigation Division (TCID) in Mineral Heights on Friday, April 10, as part of an intelligence-led effort to identify possible victims of human trafficking.

Lawmen executed a search warrant at a construction site along the Mineral Heights main road between 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., where eight men from Guangdong Province, China, were reportedly found actively working.

The discovery immediately raised red flags, prompting further checks by the Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA), which confirmed that all eight individuals had overstayed their time in Jamaica.

The men have since been charged with overstaying and working without a work permit. They are 39-year-old Tangming Gao, 46-year-old Jiquan Wu, 51-year-old Dingshun Wu, 39-year-old Xiaohua Yuan, 39-year-old Binbin Li, 50-year-old Jiancun Liu, 57-year-old Dehuli Gao, and 40-year-old Jinbo Zhang.

Meanwhile, 39-year-old Lei Gao, a naturalised Jamaican contractor of Heifer Run, Toll Gate, Clarendon, has been hit with eight counts of aiding and abetting the employment of persons without work permits.

Investigators say interviews conducted with the assistance of an interpreter allegedly revealed that the men had been recruited in China to work for Lei Gao, deepening concerns about how the operation was being run.

The case has intensified focus on illegal labour practices and the possible exploitation of foreign workers, with authorities maintaining that operations like these form part of a wider crackdown on breaches under the Aliens Act and the Foreign Nationals and Commonwealth Citizens Act.

All nine men appeared before the court yesterday as the investigation continues.

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