Two separate Chinese Triad crime gangs were actively smuggling women into Ireland where they were put to work in the sex trade, US cables published by wikileaks have revealed.
The Irish Independent has been teasing us with a drip-feed of stories around a tranche of diplomatic communications sent around the US’ network of contacts and embassies, and they’ve so far shone a light on some seriously dodgy goings on.
According to historians, the Chinese gangs now called Triads in the West have their roots in a 17th Century movement dedicated to restoring China’s Ming dynasty to the throne, but over time they degenerated into crime.
In the latest batch of cables, which started out as Garda intelligence reports that somehow found their way into the possession of the US Embassy in Dublin, it has been revealed how two branches of the crime syndicate were involved in all sorts of bad behaviour on Irish soil.
The cables indicated that the gangs, named the ‘Wo Shin Wo’ and the ‘14K’, were involved in the smuggling of both children and adults, some of whom ended up being forced to work in brothels.
The Garda reports also suggested that there are Russian, Ukrainian and West African gangs involved in crime in Ireland.
A cable from December 2005 stated: “According to the police, the Chinese tend to be active within their community and not draw public attention.
“Their community participation is allegedly in casinos, trafficking women, and money laundering through restaurants and properties.
“These are rarely brought to the attention of the public and local Chinese tend not to co-operate with police investigations.”
