5 Chinese held for sex trafficking in UK

In one of the biggest operations of its kind ever undertaken in the UK,around 150 officers from the UK Border Agency and eight different police forces carried out simultaneous raids on 13 different addresses around the south and east of England.

Three men aged 52,38 and 34 and a woman aged 35 were arrested on suspicion of conspiring to control prostitution for gain,trafficking and money laundering offences,official sources here said.

“In addition four men and a woman,all believed to be Chinese nationals,were arrested on suspicion of being involved in the management of a brothel,” a statement by the Home Office said.

Five suspected sex workers were discovered at the addresses. They are now being cared for and assessed at a specialist centre in the south east of England.

Three people,all Chinese nationals,were detained for immigration offences,the release added. Suspected brothel premises in the Surrey,Berkshire,Hertfordshire,Cambridgeshire,Hampshire and Essex areas were among those raided.

In addition,residential or business addresses in south west London,Hertfordshire,Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire were targeted.