Chinese nationals Han Bin and Jia Liu, directors of defunct textile factory Leisure Clothing in Bulebel, have been found guilty of human trafficking and jailed for six years each by the court of appeal.

Bin and Liu have been accused of exploiting their Vietnamese and Chinese workers by underpaying and overworking them.

According to the workers’ own testimony, they were paid only €200 to 300 a month, well below the legal minimum wage. Some only received €150 for two months work as the wages were kept by the company for “safekeeping”

They also had to work 12 hour days, seven days a week.

Workers’ passports were confiscated from them on arrival in Malta.

Liu had been previously acquitted by a magistrate’s court but the Attorney General had appealed the ruling.

Leisure Clothing produced designer fashion-wear for companies such as Emporio Armani and Karen Millen.

The case first came to light in 2014 as some of the Vietnamese were caught leaving the country with fake Italian IDs.