Inside one of the numerous cannabis 'grow houses' run by Vietnamese crime groups busted by police in the past 12 months. Photo / NZ Police
Inside one of the numerous cannabis 'grow houses' run by Vietnamese crime groups busted by police in the past 12 months. Photo / NZ Police
More than 200 people were able to enter New Zealand on work visas for defunct businesses later exposed as fronts for a vast network of cannabis ‘grow houses’ in Auckland, the Herald can reveal.
Cannabis remains a lucrative illicit enterprise and police raids over the past 12 months have netted thousands of plants growing under lights in rental properties, often powered by stolen electricity diverted from neighbouring addresses.
Many of those arrested were Vietnamese nationals, duped into coming to New Zealand on false promises of employment, often after paying tens of thousands of dollars to unscrupulous immigration agents to obtain visas.
Instead of working in the legitimate jobs they were promised, the exploited migrants were forced to tend the cannabis plants as “crop sitters” to repay their supposed debts.
A joint investigation between the police and Immigration New Zealand uncovered how the organised crime syndicates exploited the visa system to bring in an illegal workforce.
Operation Clementine identified 38 different registered companies with connections to the properties where the cannabis ‘grow houses’ were busted.
Those businesses, often in the construction or hospitality industries, were then targeted in raids which uncovered more hidden cannabis crops.
“During the operation, it was discovered that 11 companies were found or believed to be inoperative,” according to an Immigration NZ briefing released under the Official Information Act.
“Despite this, 203 individuals who hold valid work visas are still present in New Zealand linked to these 11 companies.”
The briefing said that 14 infringement notices were issued to companies employing staff “in a manner that is inconsistent” with a work-related condition of that person’s visa.
Deportation liability notices were issued to 38 people, while two left New Zealand voluntarily.
“Operation Clementine has resulted in a number of interventions which are helping exploited migrants to exit illegal and dangerous situations,” the briefing said.
Others who had been granted visas are now unable to enter New Zealand, the briefing said.
Immigration New Zealand cancelled 62 visas before they left Vietnam, 14 were turned around at the border, and anyone connected to the network of ‘grow house’ companies is now on a watch-list.
“Warnings have been placed on Immigration New Zealand systems on all companies selected for Operation Clementine, and on all the directors or ‘key persons’ linked to these companies, to attempt to mitigate and prevent any future connections with non-compliance and or organised crime,” the briefing said.
Police raiding a commercial cannabis operation running out of a residential home in Orakei, Auckland in October 2024. Photo / Dean Purcell.
Immigration NZ also sent relevant evidence to Inland Revenue, Oranga Tamariki and the Auckland Council to follow up.
Internally, referrals were also made to the Labour Inspectorate, the Companies Office, and the Tenancy Tribunal.
Steve Watson, the general manager in charge of investigations and compliance at Immigration NZ, was reluctant to disclose how Operation Clementine started.
But he said some patterns had been noticed that “didn’t seem quite right” and his staff worked closely with police to solve the problem together.
“We will use the information we’ve gained from this, the learnings, to help inform how we manage risk going forward.”
Watson said many of the Vietnamese nationals caught up in Operation Clementine came into the country on legitimate grounds.
“Once they’ve got here, they’ve been talked into, or moved sideways, into illicit work,” Watson said.
“It’s definitely something of concern because from a victim’s point of view, we want to protect migrants and not see them exploited or involved in criminality.
“But sometimes they are complicit, or know what they’re doing, and that’s part of the investigation that does take a lot of time.”
The joint investigation was also looking for connections between the directors and shareholders of the 38 different companies linked to the cannabis ‘grow houses’ that had been discovered.
Going forward, Watson said the main focus of Immigration New Zealand was prevention of migrant exploitation before they even applied for a visa to live here.
One of the concerns for Watson were stories of migrants paying large sums of money to “unscrupulous” agents to obtain visas.
“We’re talking $10,000 or $20,000. I’ve heard up to $30,000,” Watson said.
“That’s something we want to put a stop to. The correct way to come to New Zealand is to come straight to us [Immigration NZ].”
He referred questions about the issue of the cannabis ‘grow houses’ and Vietnamese organised crime groups to the New Zealand Police.
However, a police spokesperson failed to respond to the Herald.
Although Operation Clementine is an example of cooperation between two law enforcement agencies, a group of experts advising the Government on organised crime has warned that more needs to be done.
“Information sharing between government agencies is deficient. In some cases, that is because there are specific legislative barriers. In others, the willingness to share information proactively is due to the culture of organisations,” the advisory group wrote in March.
“We need to have a mature conversation about the privacy settings which balances the need to combat organised crime effectively, without compromising individual privacy interests.”
Jared Savage covers crime and justice issues, with a particular interest in organised crime. He joined the Herald in 2006 and has won a dozen journalism awards in that time, including twice being named Reporter of the Year. He is also the author of Gangland, Gangster’s Paradise and Underworld.
