‘Worst’ illegal migration racket busted
Eamonn Duff; 11/5/08
A blitz by the Department of Immigration on more than 20 homes and businesses has uncovered “one of the worst cases ever” of foreign worker exploitation and migration agent fraud. The two-day sting across the NSW Riverina region was sparked by a Sun-Herald investigation that exposed an illegal migration racket involving hundreds of Indian tourists. Arriving on holiday visas, the men and women gained bridging visas through a network of crooked migration agents who, for thousands of dollars in cash, lodged “grossly unfounded” asylum claims. The tourists were then sent by a labour hire agency called Primary Contracting Services to Rorato Nominees’ tomato farm in Jerilderie where allegations of sexual assault, exploitation and a series of workplace violations had all surfaced.