Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015

5 General aggravation of offence

(1) This subsection applies where it is—

(a) libelled in an indictment or specified in a complaint that an offence is aggravated by a connection with human trafficking activity, and

(b) proved that the offence is so aggravated.

(2) An offence is aggravated by a connection with human trafficking activity if the offender is motivated (wholly or partly) by the objective of committing or conspiring to commit the offence of human trafficking.

(3) It is immaterial whether or not in committing an offence the offender in fact enables the offender or another person to commit the offence of human trafficking.

(4) Evidence from a single source is sufficient to prove that an offence is aggravated by a connection with human trafficking activity.

(5) Where subsection (1) applies, the court must—

(a) state on conviction that the offence is aggravated by a connection with human trafficking activity,

(b) record the conviction in a way that shows that the offence is so aggravated,

(c) take the aggravation into account in determining the appropriate sentence, and

(d) state—

(i) where the sentence in respect of the offence is different from that which the court would have imposed if the offence were not so aggravated, the extent of and the reasons for that difference, or

(ii) otherwise, the reasons for there being no such difference.