Donegal human trafficking duo plead guilty to new charges

Two men at the centre of a major human trafficking probe in south Donegal have pleaded guilty to further offences.

Georgijs Poniza and Armen Pogosyan each affirmed guilty pleas to seven charges at Donegal Circuit Court.

The Eastern European pair have been in custody since being arrested by detectives in 2023 and previously pleaded guilty to 10 other charges in relation to the same investigation.

Poniza, a 37-year-old, and 30-year-old Pogosyan, each have addresses at Assaroe Falls, Ballyshannon, but have been detained in prison since October, 2023.

Both men face similar charges. 

The fresh charges include that they trafficked a male, with said male being coerced, threatened or otherwise used force against, or deceived him and or took advantage of the vulnerability of the trafficked person to such an extent as to cause the  trafficked person to have had no real acceptable alternative but to submit to being trafficked. The offence is contrary to section 4(1)(a)(b) and (c) and 4(7) of the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act 2008.

They were also charged with two offences contrary to section 6 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001, namely that they induced Circle K and Avant Money DAC to open a fuel account and a credit card account in the name of a trafficked person with the intention of making gain or causing loss to another.

They are also charged with making a false Electric Ireland utility bill in the name of a trafficking victim, an offence contrary to section 25 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001.

The men are also charged with using a false Latvian passport, contrary to section 26 of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001.

They are charged with having a UK driving licence bearing the name of the alleged trafficking victim, knowing the instrument to be false, contrary to section 29(2) and (6) of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001, and with having a false Latvian driving licence and the instrument was used to open a Bunq bank account. 

That offence is contrary to Section 29(1) and (6) of the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001.

Both men were assisted by separate interpreters when they were brought before Judge John Aylmer. 

When asked if he was affirming a plea of guilty, Poniza, who appeared wearing a t-shirt and jacket, replied: “Yes”.

Pogosyan, who was dressed in a shirt and tie when he appeared in the dock, also replied simply “yes” when asked by the court clerk if he was affirming his plea.

Barrister for Poniza, Ms Delia Flynn SC, said her client is an enhanced prisoner and “appears to be doing well”. She said that a governor’s report would be of benefit to the court.

Ms Flynn said that her client pleaded guilty to various charges in October were and this was an outstanding matter and offences which were contemporaneous with the other matters. 

Mr Pat O’Sullivan BL, barrister for Pogosyan, said he was making a similar application to that made by Ms Flynn.

Mr O’Sullivan said this year would be his client’s third Christmas in prison and told the court: “He is keen to get it dealt with”.

In the case of each accused, Judge Aylmer sought a probation report and asked the Probation Service to expedite the matter.

Both men were remanded in custody and the matter adjourned to February, 2026 for sentencing.

In October, the duo pleaded guilty to a total of 20 charges - 10 apiece - when they were due to stand trial. The pair were set to face a six-week sitting before judge and jury, but they pleaded guilty when formally arraigned on that occasion.

Those charges include six different counts of people trafficking on various dates and four other charges relating to money laundering and forgery. Those charges related to six separate victims, who cannot be named for legal reasons. Barrister for the State, Ms Fiona Crawford BL, told the court that the victims could not be identified, noting section 11 of the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act 2008, 

The case centres around the trafficking of people who were brought into the country to work at a business in south Donegal.

Detectives, accompanied by international colleagues, swooped on the men after a large-scale investigation into the alleged trafficking of persons into Ireland for the purpose of labour exploitation.

Europol officers were in Donegal during an international Law Enforcement Operation, which involved a Joint Investigation Team that was established in conjunction with Law Enforcement in Latvia.

An Garda Síochána’s Human Trafficking Investigation and Coordination Unit (HTICU) at GNPSB, the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau (GNCCB), Garda Mutual Assistance Section and the Garda Síochána Analysis Service (GSAS) are all involved in the probe.

Initially, each man was charged with four counts of human trafficking and one count of money laundering. Poniza was charged with being in possession of €51,100 which was the proceeds of criminal conduct and Pogosyan faced a similar charge in respect of €14,060.

The duo were charged with participating in the activity of a criminal organisation.