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Connors family members jailed for servitude offences | Connors family members jailed for servitude offences |
(35 minutes later) | |
A father and son have been jailed for keeping vulnerable men captive and forcing them to work. | A father and son have been jailed for keeping vulnerable men captive and forcing them to work. |
Tommy Connors Sr, 53, was jailed for eight years and his son Patrick, 21, for five years at Luton Crown Court. | Tommy Connors Sr, 53, was jailed for eight years and his son Patrick, 21, for five years at Luton Crown Court. |
The men from Bedfordshire were convicted last July of servitude, compulsory labour and assault charges. | |
A jury was discharged at a separate trial after failing to reach verdicts on other charges against both men and James Connors, 25, and Tommy Jr, 27. | |
The jury at Luton Crown Court failed to reach a verdict on any of the charges against them after deliberating for more than two days. | The jury at Luton Crown Court failed to reach a verdict on any of the charges against them after deliberating for more than two days. |
The Crown Prosecution Service said it would not be pursuing a retrial. | The Crown Prosecution Service said it would not be pursuing a retrial. |
Passing sentence, Judge Michael Kay said Tommy Connors Sr had targeted men who were "homeless or addicted and isolated" whom he could exploit. | |
Men would be recruited at soup kitchens and off the street with the promise of paid work, food and lodgings. | |
"It was a monstrous and callous deceit" the judge said. | "It was a monstrous and callous deceit" the judge said. |
He said over the years, hundreds of vulnerable workers had been recruited and would have been subject to threats of violence and intimidation if they wanted to leave. | |
Many managed to flee once they realised they had been tricked, but the judge said a small number had been so degraded and manipulated they had not been able to summon the courage to run away. | |
Cold water tap | |
The judge acknowledged that for Patrick Connors, keeping vulnerable workers and exploiting them had been a way of life he had been born into. | The judge acknowledged that for Patrick Connors, keeping vulnerable workers and exploiting them had been a way of life he had been born into. |
During last year's trial, the jury heard workers were held on the Green Acres site at Little Billington, near Leighton Buzzard. | |
Some were forced to live in a horsebox, others in shabby and cold caravans and sheds. | |
The only washing facility was a cold water tap in the yard. They had one toilet shared between them all. | |
They would be driven to a service station or leisure centre for a shower once a week. | |
Connors and his sons and their families all lived in luxury on the site. | |
In September 2011 Bedfordshire Police mounted a carefully co-ordinated raid on the site to free 13 workers being held against their will. | |
In Connors Snr's static home on the site, police found £16,000 in cash. | |
Also found was evidence that he had £130,000 in bank deposits. |