UK

Homeless man was 'bought' and forced to work for over 20 years, court hears

 Patrick Dean Connors (39) and William Connors (34) were convicted of requiring Mr Hughes to perform forced or compulsory labour between 2010 and 2013
 Patrick Dean Connors (39) and William Connors (34) were convicted of requiring Mr Hughes to perform forced or compulsory labour between 2010 and 2013  Patrick Dean Connors (39) and William Connors (34) were convicted of requiring Mr Hughes to perform forced or compulsory labour between 2010 and 2013

A FATHER and two sons have been found guilty of forcing a homeless man to work for their family business.

Cardiff Crown Court heard that Scottish man Michael John Hughes went to South Wales seeking a better life, but ended up being "bought" by Patrick Joseph Connors and made to do back-breaking work for as little as £5 a day for more than 20 years.

Mr Hughes, who kept quiet about his ordeal until 2014, said he was beaten "all the time" if he did not do as he was told and was made to live in appalling conditions.

Jurors heard the 46-year-old was "hunted down" each time he tried to escape, including one occasion when he was bundled into the boot of a car in Aberdeen before being taken back to Wales.

On the third day of deliberations, Connors and two sons, Patrick Dean Connors (39) and William Connors (34) were convicted of requiring Mr Hughes to perform forced or compulsory labour between 2010 and 2013.

Patrick Dean Connors was also found guilty of eight counts of causing actual bodily harm, four of kidnap and one of conspiracy to kidnap.

The court also heard that a second man - who cannot be named for legal reasons - had been frightened into submission for years and was kidnapped on at least four occasions after trying to escape.

A victim impact statement from "Mr K" described Connors senior as "an animal" and said years of malnutrition had seen him develop the brittle bone disease osteoporosis.

Patrick Joseph Connors' son-in-law Lee Christopher Carbis (34) of Trowbridge, was cleared of the compulsory labour charge against Mr Hughes but found guilty of kidnapping Mr K.

Not guilty verdicts were returned against Patrick Dean Connors on a charge of conspiracy to kidnap, and William Connors on a charge of assault.

The Crown Prosecution Service said it hoped the jury's verdicts would give the victims a sense of comfort after years of abuse.

Catrin Evans, head of the Crown Prosecution Service Cymru/Wales Complex Casework Unit, said: "Patrick Joseph Connors, Patrick Dean Connors, William Connors and Lee Carbis are guilty of exploiting and controlling their vulnerable victims in a callous manner over a prolonged period of time.

"Their victims were treated as commodities to be used as the defendants saw fit. They were kept in appalling living conditions and repeatedly threatened with violence if they tried to escape.

"Consequently, one victim remained under the control of the Connors for over 20 years, with the second victim managing to successfully escape at his fourth attempt.

"Those who seek to demean the value of life by depriving others of the most basic of human rights should be in no doubt that we will do everything in our power to bring them to justice.

"Today's convictions are a direct result of the immense courage both victims have shown in coming forward to report what happened.

"The criminal justice system cannot undo what has happened to them, nor give them back the years they have lost, but we hope that these convictions will give them some measure of assistance as they continue to rebuild their lives."