Two men have appeared in court in Co Donegal charged with both human trafficking and also money laundering.
The men appeared at a special sitting of Ballyshannon District Court before Judge Brendan O’Reilly.
The men were arrested by Gardai under section 50 Criminal Justice Act 2007 on Tuesday last, October 24th following an intelligence-led operation.
The arrests are part of an overall international operation into the alleged trafficking of persons into Ireland for the purpose of labour exploitation.
The men appeared under heavy security at Ballyshannon Courthouse having been detained at the adjoining Garda station since Tuesday last.
The two individuals charged were named as Georgijs Poniza, 35 and Armen Pogosyan, 28, both of Assaroe Falls, Ballyshannon, Co Donegal.
They were each charged with four counts of human trafficking and one count of money laundering.
The court was told that the investigation was “complex and detailed” and was ongoing in various jurisdictions for the past 18 months.
The four alleged victims are all Latvian nationals whom it was claimed arrived in Ireland by plane and were given various jobs in various companies in Donegal.
Garda Inspector Tony Byrne said Gardai were objecting to bail for both men.
Detective Garda Patrick Kelly gave evidence of the arrest, charge and cautioning of Poniza saying he made no reply when charged.
Detective Kelly outlined the reasons for his objections to bail which were strongly refuted by Mr Poniza’s solicitor Rory O’Brien.
The court was told that Poniza was a married father of four who is a Latvian national who has been living in Ballyshannon for seven years.
As well as four counts of human trafficking he is also charged with money laundering of €51,100.
Having listened to Detective Kelly and Mr O’Brien, Judge O’Reilly said he was granting bail under a number of conditions.
These include that he surrender his passport, not interfere or contact any of the alleged victims or witnesses in the case, that he sign on daily, that he reside at his address at Assaroe Falls, Ballyshannon and that he provide a mobile phone number to be contactable at.
Bail is conditional on Poniza’s own bond of €10,000, with €1,000 to be lodged in cash and the cash source to be verified. Judge O’Reilly also asked for two independent sureties of €20,000 with €3,000 cash to be lodged by each and the source to be verified.
He was remanded in custody with consent to bail.
Detective Gardai Mark Deavin gave evidence of arrest, charge of cautioning of the second accused man, Armen Pogosyan who replied ‘no comment’ to all charges.
Detective Deavin outlined the reasons for his objections to bail which were strongly refuted by Mr Pogosyan’s solicitor Morgan Coleman.
The court was told that Pogosyan was a married man and an Armenian national who had been living in both Gelnties and Ballyshannon for several years.
As well as four counts of human trafficking he is also charged with money laundering of €14,060.
Having listened to Detective Deavin and Mr Coleman, Judge O’Reilly said he was granting bail under a number of conditions.
These also include that he surrender his passport, not interfere or contact any of the alleged victims or witnesses in the case, that he sign on daily, that he reside at his address at Assaroe Falls, Ballyshannon and that he provide a mobile phone number to be contactable at.
Bail is conditional on Pogosyan’s own bond of €10,000, with €750 to be lodged in cash and the cash source to be verified. Judge O’Reilly also asked for two independent sureties of €20,000 with €2,000 cash to be lodged by each and the source to be verified.
He was also remanded in custody with consent to bail.
The cases were both adjourned until November 3rd for directions of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Two men charged with human trafficking and money laundering was last modified: October 28th, 2023 by