In another example of the interconnected structure of the illicit market, authorities in the United Kingdom are finding children who are trafficked to work as growers of marijuana.

From the Independent (UK):

Hundreds of young children illegally trafficked into the UK are the new victims of Britain’s booming cannabis trade. Figures obtained by The Independent on Sunday reveal that, as organised criminals push cannabis production to record levels, at least one child a week is being found by police raiding cannabis factories.

Experts warn that children as young as 13 are been smuggled from south-east Asia to work as “slaves” for gangs in dangerous conditions, being kept captive in towns and suburbs across the UK. They believe there has been a five-fold increase in the trade in the past 12 months.

Police believe organised crime gangs, largely Vietnamese, have moved quickly to dominate the UK cannabis market after declassification in 2004 increased the potential rewards of growing and selling the drug and decreased the risks of punishment.

As Havocscope has mentioned before, the nature of the black market allows participants to operate in various different activities.  Smugglers are able to move any type of products, whether it be drugs, people or arms.  Likewise, victims of trafficking may be forced to perform various types of labor, not only sex.  Jeffrey Robinson, author of The Merger: The Conglomeration of International Organized Crime, reported that people who are smuggled into the United States work in the Counterfeit Trade Industry to pay off their smuggling fees.

Currently, the listed value of the Havocscope Global Illicit Market Index is $990.66 billion.