Cannabis plants discovered during one of the raids. Photos courtesy of Police Scotland

Paul Kennedy

HÀ NỘI - A Vietnamese criminal gang suspected of large-scale cannabis cultivation, human trafficking and exploitation has been smashed in what police in Scotland are describing as one of the biggest operations it has ever carried out.

Thirty-six people have been arrested, all believed to Vietnamese nationals, and 14 cannabis farms discovered.

Detectives say some of those arrested are what they consider to be major players in the illegal enterprise.

Jo Farrell, Chief Constable of Police Scotland, said: “The action that has been taken is the biggest and most coordinated human trafficking operation Police Scotland has ever had.

“This was a carefully planned and important operation to disrupt and tackle an international concern which impacts communities right across Scotland.”

Around 300 officers were engaged in the enforcement action with simultaneous deployments across Scotland, targeting 47 addresses in Aberdeen, Dundee, Falkirk, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Ayrshire, Lanarkshire, Midlothian and the Scottish Borders.

Arrests were also made in Birmingham, England.

There were 35 warrants served and a number of potential trafficking victims were also recovered from several of the addresses following the raids that took place on September 23.

Detective Superintendent Stevie Bertram, Head of Police Scotland’s National Human Trafficking Unit said: “This enforcement action is the biggest and most coordinated human trafficking operation that we have ever carried out, and was the result of a lengthy investigation, working closely with our partners.

"We took a coordinated approach and the arrests and seizures are the result of this work.

“Human Trafficking is the illegal trade in human beings for the purpose of commercial exploitation, and it has no place in Scotland.

"It exists in many of our communities and can involve people who are resident legally in the country. The industry of trafficking people has become so sophisticated that it often goes unnoticed.”

Police say they are trying to establish if any of the people arrested at the cannabis farms include victims of human trafficking.

At one address raided in the Scottish capital city Edinburgh, police discovered three rooms crammed with cannabis plants growing behind tarpaulin screens under bright lights.

In Dundee, a cannabis operation discovered in two neighbouring flats had been extended into a shared loft.

The police will now try to establish whether the people arrested include victims of human trafficking.

"Vietnamese nationals are still the highest nationality that we see being exploited in Scotland" Detective Superintendent Bertram told the BBC.

Justice & Care deployed two Victim Navigators, based in Scotland, to assist in the police operation.

The Victim Navigator programme provides trauma informed support at the point of rescue and beyond, recognising that every victim has lived through a different experience. 

Debi Lloyd, Head of Counter-Trafficking at Justice & Care, said: ''Trauma-informed support is ultimately about recognising the person before the process. When somebody begins to trust again, to make their own choices and believe that people will do what they say they will do, that can be incredibly powerful.'' VNS