The Newcastle-based Rafael family, of Roma origin, applied for benefits in their victims' names and kept the money for themselves, as well as only giving them a fraction of the pay they earned in tough jobs across the North East.

Their victims, some of them homeless people picked up in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, were forced to sleep in cellars and crammed into shared rooms in Newcastle's West End.

They were not allowed control over their bank accounts, their lengthy trial at Teesside Crown Court was told.

Their lack of English and any documentation, as well as little access to money, effectively left them trapped.

