Police in Tenerife have broken up an organised crime gang that imported women from South America to force them to work as prostitutes on the island.
The investigation began in May when two victims of the gang managed to escape in the early hours of the morning from a house where they were exploited as sex workers and reported their plight to police.
Their detailed information was crucial to helping the authorities identify the members of the highly organised network, which recruited women in Venezuela with fake offers of work and, once here, coerced them into prostitution, subjecting them to physical abuse and controlling their movements at all times.
Coordinated raids on several properties in different parts of Santa Cruz led to the seizure of firearms, money and computers, together with documents revealing the activities of the gang. Two other women exploited by the traffickers were freed also.
Four individuals have been arrested in connection with the sex trafficking and remanded in custody pending trial. The first was detained in Santa Cruz and is said to be the man directly responsible for controlling the women on a daily basis, while the other three were arrested at Tenerife North airport as they tried to leave the island.
