Shocking: An entire family was forced into slavery in Hungary

There is no end to modern slavery: an entire family has been held in forced labour in Borsod County, Hungary. The three defendants have been charged.

Slavery in Borsod county

Vulnerable people were forced to work in a village in Borsod county, Hungary. The three accused have been charged. The family of six lived in completely vulnerable conditions and they had no steady income, napi.hu reports.

The prosecutor’s office of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County has brought charges against two men and a woman. The three forced a man and a family of six living in a small village in Borsod to perform hard physical labour for several years.

From early 2018 until the end of February 2020, the defendants, who are related to each other, forced a man with no income and poor health to do hard manual labour at their woodyard, fuel store and convenience store. They even threatened him at times.

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Some food and wine as payment

They gave him food and two litres of wine a day as payment. They did not pay him the HUF 7-10 thousand (EUR 18.10-25.87) he was owed for casual work. Thus, they gained an illegal advantage totalling more than HUF 5 million (EUR 12,933).

From the end of 2018 to the end of April 2021, a family of six, also living in the municipality, with no regular income, were forced to do hard manual labour in their businesses as well. After the family’s house became uninhabitable, they were moved out and one of the defendants collected rent from them.

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A huge amount of unlawful benefit

As payment, family members were given food and drink and clothing, barely enough to meet their daily needs. Rarely, they gave them a minimal cash allowance. In this case, the daily amount due for casual work was not paid either. So, their actions resulted in an unlawful benefit of HUF 36 million (EUR 77,600).

The Prosecutor General’s Office has charged the two men and the woman in criminal custody with human trafficking, forced labour and minor assault, with a prison sentence, a fine and a ban from public office, as well as forfeiture of property.