Immigration New Zealand’s (INZ) Investigations team has a very important role to investigate and prosecute people trafficking and migrant exploitation matters in New Zealand.

“Our team investigates and prosecutes people that don’t follow the rules within the immigration system. We want to uphold the integrity of the immigration system, we know that prosecutions act as a deterrent and send a clear message about not following the rules. We are driven by good outcomes for our victims and it is rewarding when we achieve this,” says Carl, Investigations Manager at INZ.

“The team work really closely with groups within MBIE and in particular, the Risk and Verification team, the Labour Inspectorate, Compliance, Intelligence and the Trafficking in Persons team. Externally, we work with Police, Customs and Oranga Tamariki. It’s a true team approach to prosecuting those offenders who are trying to exploit migrants and the system.”

Operation Star - Joseph Matamata

Vulnerable migrants are sometimes exposed to offenders that exploit them for their labour or their own financial benefit. At the extreme end, there are offenders like Joseph Matamata who exploited migrants by using slavery like practices and treating them inhumanely.

In 2020, Matamata was sentenced to prison and ordered to pay reparations to his victims following his conviction on trafficking and slavery charges. This prosecution was the result of Operation Star, and it was the first time joint trafficking and slavery charges had been laid against an offender in New Zealand. INZ, particularly the investigations team, worked with Police and had the support of Samoan authorities to bring him to trial. After 3 years of investigation and 2 more years for the court process to finish, Matamata was finally sentenced. 

“This was a big case and the same outcome would not have been possible without the collective efforts across the whole Investigations unit, a range of teams within INZ and external agencies. The Investigations team in particular are a small resource and a significant number of investigators dedicated their lives and personal time to this case. There was no guarantee that we would necessarily succeed at holding the offender accountable for his actions but with the team’s perseverance and tenacity, we got the rewards for the victims and lifted the lid of something that’s really hidden. Most New Zealanders had no idea that this type of offending existed in our own backyard. It also exposed an underbelly of sinister behaviour that sat below our reliance on our migrant workforce.”

“Another positive was that INZ, with the help of the Crown Solicitor, was able to negotiate with the asset recovery unit and the official assignee to waive the administrative court costs so the victims could have as much of the financial reward from the forfeiture of his assets as possible.”

Holding offenders to account

It is difficult with people trafficking and exploitation cases as victims are kept quiet or blackmailed, which makes it particularly hard to investigate or prosecute. Worldwide, success rates for prosecutions are extremely low as they are formed on the basis of witness or victim testimony but when the team is able to persevere and hold the offender to account, the results are phenomenally rewarding.

“It’s a challenging process for the victims who are often the vulnerable members of our society but extremely powerful when they are able to speak up. It’s moments like these that makes the job incredibly worth it. Their testimonies bring offenders to justice and hold them accountable for their inexplicable behaviour,” says Carl.

“Following the Matamata case, I’m really proud of the team for creating the benchmark and opportunity to build a foundation from. We are constantly learning and trying to improve on how we can prevent or mitigate this happening in the future.”

A snippet of this great result was shown in TVNZ 1’s Sunday programme last week.