Chinese Triad gangs trafficking women into Ireland for sex industry – cables
TWO Chinese Triad crime gangs based in Ireland are illegally trafficking women into the country to work in the sex industry, leaked diplomatic cables reveal.
Details on the gangs’ activities emerged in Garda intelligence reports obtained by the US Embassy in Dublin and sent to the State Department in Washington.
The reports name the gangs as the ‘Wo Shin Wo’ and the ‘14K’.
The cables also disclosed strong Chinese involvement in the trafficking of children, some of whom end up working as sex slaves in brothels.
The ‘confidential’ dispatches are revealed in the Ireland Cables – a tranche of over 1,900 US embassy documents exclusively obtained by the Irish Independent from the whistle-blowing organisation WikiLeaks.
The cables show how the US government was keen to gather information on organised crime gangs in Ireland, particularly those involved in drug and people trafficking.
Other cables reveal how:
*Irish drug kingpin Christy Kinihan used a British businessman to front a major drug trafficking operation for him in West Africa;
*Gardai intelligence reports obtained by the US embassy gave details of Russian, Ukrainian, Chinese and West African involvement in various organised criminal activity in Ireland;
*A diplomatic row erupted behind the scenes between the Irish and US governments after an American report was critical of our response to people trafficking.
Details of strong Chinese involvement in people trafficking emerged just days after the Irish Independent revealed how other cables showed trafficked children have been ending up in brothels here for the past three years.
Cables also show Health Service Executive (HSE) officials believed Chinese gangs were preying on children from their own country and that these minors were “at greatest risk” of being trafficked into Ireland;
One cable – sent in December 2005 – states: “According to the police, the Chinese tend to be active within their community and not draw public attention.
“Their community participation is allegedly in casinos, trafficking women, and money laundering through restaurants and properties.”
Gardai also reported a great deal of interaction between the Chinese gangs operating in Ireland and Scotland.
It said there were “many incidents” with Chinese nationals’ involvement in kidnappings, extortion and even murder within their own community.
But the cable added: “These are rarely brought to the attention of the public and local Chinese tend not to co-operate with police investigations.”
Copies of the cable were forwarded to US embassies in Beijing, Abuja, Chisinau, Moscow and Ottawa.
By Tom Brady – Independent.ie
Wednesday June 08 2011
Source: innocentvoicesuk.com
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