Case Law Database

Trafficking in persons

Offences

• Trafficking in children (under 18 years)
• Trafficking in persons (adults)

Acts Involved

• Recruitment/Hiring
• Transportation
• Harbouring

Means Used

• Threat of the use of force or of other forms of coercion
• Deception
• Abuse of power or a position of vulnerability

Cass. pen. Sez. V, n. 2775

Italy

Fact Summary

The Defendant convinced two minors to follow him to Italy, promising them a legal job in the Country and obtaining custody powers from their parents. Once they illegally entered Italy, he took their passports away and beat them to force them to pickpocket and hand over to him the stolen goods, threatening them that he would kill or mutilate them if they would run away. He forced them to live in precarious conditions in a occupied facility, together with other hundreds of people. The Defendant forced also another victim to participate in his criminal activities, pickpocketing on tube trains.

Commentary and Significant Features

The Court investigated the meaning of position of vulnerability, mentioned by the European framework decision on combating trafficking in human beings. In particular, it stated that such vulnerability is characterized by the poor conditions in which the trafficked minors were living: they experienced a total lack of reference point and a substantial dependence for their living needs on the Defendant. The Court noted that, considering such elements, the intensity of the surveillance on the minors by the Defendant was not relevant.
Sentence Date:
2010-11-18
Author:
UNODC

Keywords

Acts:
Recruitment
Transportation
Harbouring
Means:
Threat or use of force or other forms of coercion
Deception
Abuse of power or a position of vulnerability
Purpose of Exploitation:
Other
Form of Trafficking:
Transnational
Sector in which exploitation takes place:
Other sectors

Cross-Cutting Issues

Liability

... for

• completed offence

... based on

• criminal intention

... as involves

• principal offender(s)

Offending

Details

• occurred across one (or more) international borders (transnationally)

Involved Countries

Italy

Romania

Procedural Information

Legal System:
Civil Law
Latest Court Ruling:
Supreme Court
Type of Proceeding:
Criminal
 

Victims / Plaintiffs in the first instance

Victim:
Anonymous
Gender:
Child
Nationality:
Romanian
Victim:
Anonymous
Gender:
Child
Nationality:
Romanian
Victim:
Anonymous
Gender:
Male
Nationality:
Romanian

Defendants / Respondents in the first instance

Defendant:
S.I.
Gender:
Male
Nationality:
Romanian

Charges / Claims / Decisions

Defendant:
S.I.
Legislation / Statute / Code:
Art 600 Criminal Code
Charge details:
Reduce to or maintain in slavery
Verdict:
Guilty
Finding:

The appealed judgment infers the existence of a condition of continuous subjection of the victims due to their being minors, away from their families, placed in a precarious living facility in a foreign Country, deprived of their documents and forced with violence to commit crimes; beyond this natural situation of inferiority and necessity, typical of a minor separated by their family, other elements make the situation even more oppressive. In this scenario, it is logic to infer the basic elements of the exploitation and of the use of the Victims as they belonged to the perpetrator; thus, the crime has been committed.
[…]
To commit this crime, the personal freedom does not need to be completely denied. It is possible to consider a conduct as “keeping in slavery” when there is a substantial reduction of a person’s ability of self-determination, so that the condition of subjection (required for this crime) is satisfied.

 

Unofficial translation of the judgment
Legislation / Statute / Code:
Art. 611 Criminal Code
Charge details:
Use threats to force someone to commit crimes
Verdict:
Guilty
Charge details:
Collusion in aggravated theft
Verdict:
Guilty
Term of Imprisonment:
15 years

Court

Court of Cassation

Attachments