A statement released by the GLAA this morning reveals Natalija Vincukova was deemed to be not fit and proper when she applied for a licence in March 2018 for her newly launched labour supply business NV Professional Staff Services, of Market Place, Boston.

An employment tribunal heard before Judge Britton in Nottingham earlier this year subsequently dismissed her appeal.

Vincukova, along with her husband Janis Vincukova, were previously stripped of GLAA licences in 2014 when an investigation uncovered links to Wisbech-based criminal Ivars Mezals, who was jailed for 18 months for operating as a gangmaster without a licence.

GLAA investigators acting alongside Cambridgeshire Police found connections between workers staying in Mezals’ properties and NV Gangwork, also based in Market Place.

This discovery resulted in licences for businesses belonging to the Vincukovas – NV Gangwork and JN Gangwork – being revoked. A licence application for a separate company set up just before the revocations was also refused by the GLAA.

The couple appealed all three decisions but in 2016 were unsuccessful, with employment judge Peter Britton calling Ms Vincukova’s credibility in particular as “shot”.

In considering Ms Vincukova’s latest application, the GLAA raised concerns there was still no credible explanation for her dealings with Mezals, together with false statements she made under oath during the appeal hearing.

Despite providing no explanation or answers to these concerns, Vincukova appealed the decision, which was dismissed earlier this year at an employment tribunal in Nottingham earlier this year.

Acting as an unlicensed gangmaster is a criminal offence, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine.

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