Restaurant owners made millions from visa scam luring Indians to work 80 hours a week in Europe
Indian restaurant workers have been lured to Europe in a visa scam and then forced to toil for long hours, seven days a week, with threats of violence, police have said. Europol, the EU’s law enforcement agency, said victims were made to work 16 hours a day and the restaurants involved made €4 million (US 4.5 million) in profits from underpaying them. At least 70 workers, mainly Indian nationals,…
Indian restaurant workers were lured to Europe through a visa scam, according to Europol, the EU's law enforcement agency. These workers were forced to labor for long hours, up to 80 hours a week, in exploitative conditions across seven European countries. The restaurant owners allegedly made €4 million in profits by underpaying the workers, who were often Indian nationals recruited for positions such as dishwashers, cleaners, and managers.
Two owners of eight Indian restaurants in the Netherlands were arrested as part of a people trafficking investigation, with investigators suspecting similar activities in other restaurants associated with the same chain in Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, France, and Switzerland. The workers were recruited, housed, and trapped by the suspects, facing threats of violence and financial penalties if they wished to leave.
Europol stated that the suspects used psychological coercion and pressured the victims and their families in India to keep them working. The Netherlands Labour Authority arrested the two restaurant owners on suspicion of human smuggling and employing illegal aliens, noting that the workers lived and worked illegally due to their misuse of chef visas.
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