SCD 9
Human Exploitation and
Organised Crime OCU
Inspector Jon Birch
2nd July 2010
Background to SCD9
Trafficking and Immigration review late 2009
Identified duplication of effort between MPS teams
Human Trafficking Team funding due to end
No single point of contact for trafficking
Need to have centre of excellence
Need to have strong and clear links with partners
Need to continue support for other areas of exploitation
Joined Specialist Crime Directorate 1st April 2010
Single point of contact for trafficking from that date
Partnership contacts
• Barnardos
• NSPCC
• Children's Society
• ECPAT
• Stop The Traffik
• Croydon Community Against Trafficking
• London Councils
• CEOP – Child Exploitation Online Protection Centre
• Refugee Council
and many more….
Trafficking and Prostitution Unit
Two proactive teams investigating human trafficking and
organised criminal networks controlling prostitution
Brothels team responsible for intelligence gathering in
off-street premises
Olympic boroughs team working with five footprint
boroughs as 2012 approaches
Crime squad assisting borough officers with street
prostitution, kerb crawling and carding
Trafficking and Prostitution Unit
Operational priorities:
• Children
• Human trafficking
• Violence and coercion
• Organised criminal networks
Interventions
• Intelligence gathering visits to brothels across London
• Proactive operations
• Priority given to operations involving children
• Intelligence - led street sweeps
• Fast - time visits to brothels where children are
suspected
• Publicity around child sexual exploitation
A Child’s experience
• Victim 16 years old, befriended by male in Lithuania
• Deceived into believing male is boyfriend who pays for
trip to UK for a ‘weekend break’
• On arrival in UK he leaves for a meeting and hands
victim to ‘friends’ to 'look after her’
• Boyfriend never seen again
A Child’s experience
• Taken to Sheffield with males
• Threats made to her and her family if she didn’t
provide sexual services for money
• Moved from Sheffield and sold to Albanian males in
London
• Placed into brothel in London
Operational Start Point
• Police contacted by BBC following concerns by mother
who had reported daughter missing in Lithuania
• Mother has received money transfer from Hounslow in
London
• Police conduct immediate enquiries and rescue victim
from brothel in Hounslow
Operational Start Point
• Officers return victim to NGO in Lithuania for safety
and conduct full debrief of victim
• Operation begins to identify traffickers and controllers
involved
• Identifies series of brothels in London linked to
traffickers of victim
Investigation Established:
Series of brothels identified in Hounslow
5 Albanians identified running the criminal network.
15 – 20 women working in the premises.
Each earning between £300 - £700 a day for traffickers.
Arrests
21 victims identified and rescued.
Other victims identified through debriefs
£35,000 cash found in safe house.
Money transfers to foreign bank accounts identified and
seized.
Flamur DeMarku
18yrs
imprisonment
Agron DeMarku
Izzet Fejzullahu
18yrs imprisonment
14 yrs
imprisonment
Bedri DeMarku
8 yrs
Xhevair DeMarku
imprisonment
5 yrs imprisonment
Child trafficking case study 1
• Identified criminal network recruiting children from
Africa
• Forced into prostitution and worked across the EU
• UK identified as a trafficking staging post
• Victim identified in prison for document offences.
Attended crown court with agency and assisted victim
into accommodation and negotiated withdrawal of
document offence charges
• Arrests and charges anticipated shortly
Child trafficking case study 2
• Identified criminal network within the UK
• Children trafficked both within the UK and from outside
• Very large sums of money involved
• Trial later this year
Child trafficking case study 3
• Victim brought to UK from Africa
• 'Employed' as domestic servant
• Denied access to passport
• Sleeping on mat on the floor
• Not allowed to leave house unless escorted
• Looking after children, cooking and cleaning
• Charges pending
Abusive and Extreme Images Unit
Proactive team investigating the production and
distribution of obscene material, including indecent
images of children
Computer Crime Unit investigating those who share
indecent images of children via the internet.
Operation Caiman
Over 250 suspects identified since Jan 2007, including:
•
London 2008 - arrest for 500,000 indecent images,
largest collection found by to date.
•
London – 2009 - arrest for possessing indecent
images. Had also sexually assaulted a 13 year old
neighbour and had set up a video camera to
covertly film people using his toilet.
Any
Questions?