Police in Los Alcázares have detained a man accused of exploiting irregular migrant workers at a clandestine vehicle repair workshop in the Murcia region. The arrest followed an investigation into labour exploitation linked to human trafficking. Officers uncovered the workshop inside a derelict farmhouse, where several foreign nationals were allegedly employed without legal status.

According to the National Police, the workers endured long shifts without contracts, registration with Social Security, or legal protections. Investigators say they were paid around 10 euros a day and denied basic rights such as rest breaks and holiday entitlement. They were reportedly sanctioned financially if they became ill.

The working environment was described as unsafe and unhygienic. Repairs were carried out directly on bare earth, with no access to running water and no protective equipment provided. The workers were said to have paid for their own basic safety materials.

Police officers, accompanied by staff from the Provincial Labour and Social Security Inspectorate, identified three irregular workers they consider victims of labour exploitation. The man running the workshop has been arrested on suspicion of offences against workers’ rights and facilitating illegal immigration.