Trafficking in human beings for sexual and other purposes - Polisen

4. Other National Bureau of Investigation initiatives against human trafficking37The collaborative work between the National Bureauof Investigation and the police authorities in the UKcontinued during 2011. In September 2011, the Britishpolice made a major raid on a camp in Bedfordshirewhich led to seven people from one family beingdetained. About twenty people were taken into thecare of social services as victims of human traffickingfor forced labour purposes. The investigation showedthat the victims were vulnerable men who were withoutfamily, work and home, and/or victims who wereintellectually impaired. S ome of the victims mayhave worked for the family for more than 15 years.The living environment, food supply and sanitaryconditions for the workers in the camp were substandard.In July 2012, four perpetrators were sentencedby Luton Crown Court for offences includinghuman trafficking for forced labour purposes 54 .Collaboration with BelgiumDuring the period 2008 to 2011, in conjunction withan investigation into suspected procuring and humantrafficking in Belgium, the National Bureau of Investigationran a parallel investigation into suspectedhuman trafficking in Sweden. The investigationbegan when several Thai women were found in brothelsin Belgium by the Belgian police. The women hadentered the Schengen area on visas issued by theSwedish Embassy in Bangkok.The investigation confirmed that the SwedishEmbassy in Bangkok had been misled concerning thevisa applications. The perpetrators had attached falsedocuments, linked to named referees /sponsors inSweden, to applications for visas. Some referees hadalso knowingly provided false information. Suspected54 The ringleaders were sentenced on 12 July 2012 to betweenfour and eleven years in prison for such offences as “holdinganother in servitude or requiring another to perform forcedlabour”.aggravated procuring or human trafficking could notbe substantiated however because there was no evidencethat the referees were aware that women wouldbe exploited for prostitution purposes. Any violationof the Aliens Act was deemed to be covered by thestatute of limitations.The investigation showed that businesses and privateindividuals in Belgium had recruited Thai womenfor prostitution in an organised manner, and thatpeople living in Sweden had deliberately recruitedreferees for the women. The necessary elements forcomplicity in aggravated procuring or human traffickingcould not be verified, despite the suspiciousbehaviour of persons being considered to be a facilitatingfactor for the criminality itself.Following a request from the Belgian police, theNational Bureau of Investigation, assisted by localpolice authorities, held interviews with people in Swedenin association with the ongoing preliminaryinvestigation into human trafficking. The interviewsrevealed that seven Thai women, who all found themselvesin financial difficulties at home were recruitedto Belgium with false promises of well-paid jobs asmasseuses. The recruiters, who were a Thai womanand her American husband, acquired tickets andapplied for visas for the women through the SwedishEmbassy in Bangkok. The victims had no links withSweden. Despite this, the recruiters approachedtwenty Swedish men who chose to stand as guarantorsfor the visa applications.In Belgium, the women were exploited in prostitutionin order to pay off the money owed for travel,food and lodging. The women, who did not receiveany payment, were forced to live in the brothel massagebooths in which they were also exploited andwere kept locked up at night. Three men were arrestedin the case, one of whom was married to a Thaiwoman.