This is the first analysis of Australian offenders convicted of trafficking in persons, slavery, and slavery-like crimes, with attention to similarities and differences between such offending in Australia and elsewhere; and strategies are proposed for preventing and deterring such offending.
Fifteen offenders have been convicted of human trafficking, slavery, and sexual servitude under Australia's Criminal Code. Thirteen of the 15 convictions have been for offenses of slavery and sexual servitude. Only two convictions involved trafficking-in-persons offenses. The 15 convicted persons were involved in 9 trafficking schemes, with 7 of the 9 schemes involving slavery, human trafficking, and sexual servitude in the sex industry. An analysis of the features of the crimes and the offenders yielded five key findings. First, offenders typically exploited their victims through subtle methods of control rather than through the use of force or explicit threats of violence. Second, offenders and victims were often the same gender and shared similar backgrounds and experiences. Third, the reported cases of offending do not match common assumptions about high-end organized crime. Groups identified as having trafficked people into Australia have been relatively small, with many using family or business contacts. Fourth, all the offenders were motivated by profit. Fifth, the trafficking process often involves other criminal activity, such as immigration fraud and money laundering. The authors of this report advise that following the recent introduction of new Commonwealth offenses for forced labor, forced marriage, and organ trafficking, future research should focus on how offending patterns differ across a range of sectors and settings. Individual case studies, a literature review, and 32 references