Shocking photos reveal the horrors of a ‘slave’ jail run by a millionaire traveller family where a captive was forced to sleep in urine and faeces-soaked duvets.
The Rooneys kept 18 homeless men slaves for up to 26 years at Drinsey Nook in Lincolnshire to make more than £1.5million to fund a lavish lifestyle.
The cruel clan jetted off on holidays to Barbados, Australia, Egypt and Mexico while splashing out on high performance BMW cars and Rolex watches.
As the Rooneys lived in ‘immaculate, gleaming homes’ their captives were forced to work for the family’s driveway business, tarmacking and paving drives, and lived in squalid conditions with leftover scraps for food.
They were made to clean up their own blood after beatings with one told to ‘dig your own grave’ if he did not sign a bogus contract.
The filthy stinking caravans where they slept in dirty sleeping bags had carpets, beds and duvets soaked with urine and faeces.
Inside one, excrement can be seen inside a litter box tray with rubbish strewn all over the sides with the floor covered in muck.
In all, the Ronneys forced 18 men to be slaves and live in terrible living conditions at Drinsey Nook in Lincolnshire. They had little or no access to basics such as heating, water and toilets
One captive – named only as Victim A – this week successfully sued the government for £352,000 for denying him adequate compensation (Pictured inside one of the stinking caravans)
One of the caravans stayed in by the slaves shows a dirty litter box on the floor and a rubbish bag next to a visibly unwashed bed
A filthy interior in one of the caravans that the slaves had to live in
The police said victims were ‘poorly fed’ and often went hungry while they lived in the caravans
A caravan on the travellers’ site which housed some of the victims held captive by the Rooney family
When 11 members of the Rooney family were convicted in 2017, it marked the largest modern slavery case in British legal history. They were jailed for up to 15 years.
Judge Timothy Spencer QC said the difference in their lives was ‘akin to the gulf between medieval royalty and the peasantry’.
This week, one of the captives – named only as Victim A – successfully sued the government for £352,000 for denying him adequate compensation.
But the man, who was in his fifties, waited so long for compensation that his captors have now been released from prison.
Fifteen other men held captive alongside Victim A passed away before they could also claim adequate compensation.
His sister, who presumed her brother was dead while he was held captive, said he never received ‘adequate compensation’, being awarded just £12,428 by the court.
Seven years since the case, she has taken action to secure a payout from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), an agency of the Ministry of Justice.
The sister said the £352,000 compensation payment will pay for much needed care for her ‘lovely’ brother, the BBC first reported.
But lawyers have claimed the CICA was ‘not fit for purpose’ after 15 other men held captive alongside Victim A passed away before they could take the same action.
Victim A’s sister said the lack of initial compensation meant her vulnerable brother could not pay for rehabilitation for injuries inflicted by his captors.
John and Bridget Rooney (pictured) are among the family members who were convicted
Patrick Rooney (left) and Martin Rooney (right) were also convicted of the offences
Lawrence Rooney (left) and Gerald Rooney (right) were also convicted of offences following a series of linked trials relating to modern slavery
Patrick Rooney’s sitting room, complete with three rugs, a large sofa and family photos on the walls
The inside of Patrick Rooney’s home is markedly different from the conditions in which the slaves were kept
John Rooney (left) and Martin Rooney (right) were among the younger members of the slave gang
Solicitor Jamila Duncan-Bosu, from the Anti-trafficking and Exploitation Unit charity, said: ‘CICA is not fit for purpose when it comes to victims of modern day slavery, despite it being incredibly common.
‘Compensation is paramount for victims of trafficking, for rehabilitation and to help them rebuild their lives, to stop that cycle of exploitation.’
The millionaire family – dubbed ‘The Rooney Lynch Mob’ – were jailed for a total of 79 years in 2017.
The Rooney’s splashed out on holidays in Barbados and Mexico, sports cars, cosmetic surgery and even a place on a Manchester United soccer school course.
The trial at Nottingham Crown Court in the same year described Martin Rooney Senior and Bridget Rooney as the ‘patriarch and the matriarch’ of the enterprise.
They recruited people after plying them with booze and drugs and eventually took control of their bank accounts.
One man with learning difficulties, who lived on the site for 15 years, told how he would receive a ‘slap’ if he disobeyed Martin Rooney Sr.
He was often left with a bleeding mouth and bruising to his face after being subjected to beatings at the hands of the gypsy thug.
Prosecutor Riel Karmy-Jones QC said: ‘These defendants preyed on people who had fallen on hard times and pushed to the fringes of society – some of whom had mental health issues.
‘They exploited their desire to better themselves and find a community within which to live.
‘They offered them money, food and a place to stay which was usually a caravan – often ill-equipped.
‘Some of the victims lived in squalid conditions – allocating areas outside for their bodily functions.
‘Some were reduced to stealing in order to feed themselves.
‘Martin Senior and Bridget Rooney were the heads of the family.
‘They were the patriarch and matriarch who started the enterprise.
‘There was not one individual who didn’t suffer from some sort of affliction.
‘Mental health, learning difficulties, many were homeless and many were in dire straits living on the streets.
‘(One man) has learning difficulties and suffered from a condition that hampered his speech and movement.
‘He was not well and lived there for some time. He said he ended up there for 15 years ‘tidying up’.
‘Describing Bridget Rooney he said “she has got a right temper on her”. If he ever said no to Martin Sr, he would get a slap.
‘There was one time where he was bleeding from his mouth and suffered bruising to his face.
Peter Doran (pictured) arrives at Nottingham Crown Court on September 7, 2017
Gerard Rooney (left) and Martin Rooney (right) arrive at Nottingham Crown Court on September 7, 2017
Patrick Rooney (pictured) arrives at Nottingham Crown Court on September 7, 2017
Gang member Bridget Rooney arrives at Nottingham Crown Court on September 7, 2017
‘He said he was treated like how they treat the dogs.
‘Martin Sr took (one victim’s) bank card and cleared out all the money he had.
‘If he told on them he would be beaten. He said ‘I didn’t leave because I had nowhere else to go.’
‘Mobile phones were taken off them so they could not call the police or members of their family.’
Twins Patrick, a bare-knuckle fighter, and John Martin Felix Rooney also ‘threw punches’ at those who had said they had ‘had enough’.
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