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A West Australian couple is expected to face Perth Magistrates Court today (9 August, 2024) charged with allegedly keeping a female employee, 41, in debt bondage and illegally taking her passport.

The AFP had previously charged the man, 32, and woman, now aged 38, with multiple alleged debt bondage, passport and visa offences as part of a human trafficking investigation.

Those charges included two counts of allegedly providing false details on visa applications for the 41-year-old woman, a foreign national who came to Australia in October 2023 to work at the couple’s massage business in regional WA. She ceased employment at the business after involvement by the AFP. 

As a result of the ongoing investigation, the AFP will allege the couple committed further offences against the woman, including taking her passport when she arrived in Australia and allocating unreasonable expenses to her.

The AFP first charged the couple in May, 2024, for allegedly keeping another foreign worker, a 36-year-old woman, in debt bondage and illegally taking her passport when she came to Australia in September 2023 to work as a masseuse in the same business.

In July, the AFP laid extra charges over allegations the couple submitted false information on multiple visa documents relating to the two women, a third foreign national who worked at the business in early 2023, and four others who did not reach Australia.

This case is the first time the AFP has laid debt bondage charges in Western Australia.

The AFP is seeking to prosecute the couple for the following offences:

• Two counts of engaging in conduct that caused a person to enter into debt bondage, contrary to section 270.7C of the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is four years’ imprisonment; and
• Two counts of having control of a foreign travel document, being a passport belonging to another person, contrary to section 21(4) of the Foreign Passports (Law Enforcement & Security) Act 2005 (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is 10 years’ imprisonment; and
• Nine counts of delivered to a person performing functions under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), multiple documents containing information that is false in connection with the entry and immigration clearance of a non-citizen, with an application for a visa to enter Australia and a further visa permitting the non-citizen to remain in Australia, contrary to section 234 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is 10 years’ imprisonment.

AFP Detective Superintendent Peter Chwal said police would allege the couple attempted to profit from exploiting vulnerable foreign workers and cheating immigration laws.

“Some victims may view their working conditions as preferable to those in their country of origin – even though the conditions are extremely exploitative," Det-Supt Chwal said.

“All workers in Australia are entitled to a minimum wage and certain conditions.

“The AFP and partner agencies can help people who are being exploited and are focused on protecting the safety and welfare of victims.”

If you suspect that you or another person is being exploited or is at risk of being exploited, help is available. Call 131 AFP (237) or report via the AFP website.

If you have immediate concerns for your safety, the safety of another person, or there is an emergency, dial Triple Zero (000).

If you or someone you know is exploited at work in Australia, visit the Work Right Hub for more information and support.

The Support for Trafficked People Program is a key component of Australia’s response to support victims of human trafficking, slavery and slavery-like practices.

If you or someone you know is being exploited, help is available. For information and confidential advice please contact Australian Red Cross. Call 1800 113 015 or visit redcross.org.au/stpp.

The below can be indicators of human trafficking, slavery and slavery-like practices, which are comprehensively criminalised under Divisions 270 and 271 of the Criminal Code 1995 (Cth):

• Employer or manager being unable to show records of wages paid to workers.
• No access to earnings or savings.
• Workers live in places unsuitable for living, such as in agricultural or industrial buildings or in overcrowded or unsafe accommodation.
• No labour contract.
• Forced to work excessively long hours.
• No choice of accommodation.
• Never leave work premises without being escorted by their employer.
• Unable to move freely.
• Disciplined through fines.
• Subjected to insults, abuse, threats or violence.
• Employer doesn't provide basic training.
• Information is provided in languages other than the local language around the workplace.
• No health and safety notices.
• Employer or manager being unable to show the documents required for employing workers from other countries.
• Health and safety equipment being of poor quality or missing.
• Work equipment being designed or modified so that it can be operated by children.
• Evidence that labour laws are being breached.
• Evidence that workers must pay for tools or that costs for food or accommodation are being unlawfully deducted from their wages.