Police raid Northampton address as part of international operation targeting sex-trafficking gang

Northamptonshire Police involved in series of raids in England, Scotland and Romania
Police raided a property in Spring Burroughs early on Wednesday morningPolice raided a property in Spring Burroughs early on Wednesday morning
Police raided a property in Spring Burroughs early on Wednesday morning

Police raided a Northampton town centre address as part of an international operation targeting a gang suspected of human-trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation.

Wednesday's dawn swoop in Simons Walk, Spring Boroughs, was led by Police Scotland backed up by officers from the Northamptonshire Force.

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The raid was one of nine carried out coordinated across England and Scotland — plus another 23 in Romania.

Ten individuals were arrested in the UK in connection with offences related to serious and organised crime and human trafficking. A further 14 suspects are being held by Romanian police.

A number of potential trafficking victims were also recovered from several of the addresses in Northampton, Coventry, Leicester Glasgow and Aberdeen.

Detective Inspector Adrian Wallis, from Police Scotland and who led the operation, said: “Today’s enforcement action was the result of a lengthy investigation, with Police Scotland working alongside our counterparts in Romania.

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“The arrests made today are the result of working closely with our partners in the National Crime Agency and officers in Romania over the last 12 months, to identify those involved in this exploitation.

“The investigation isn’t over yet, however, today’s action should send a very clear message: trafficking won’t be tolerated and we will continue to work with partners, nationally and internationally, to identify those involved in slavery and exploitation and to bring them to justice.”

Detective Superintendent Fil Capaldi, Head of Police Scotland’s National Human Trafficking Unit said: “Human trafficking, exploitation and modern slavery has no place here.

"Organised Crime Groups who enslave and traffic people do it for no other reason than financial gain. People are treated as a commodity that can be bought and sold, and the traffickers have no thought or consideration for the impact of their actions on their victims or for the communities in which the victims are exploited.

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“Borders are meaningless to traffickers. Their illegal trade has a global reach and crosses national and international boundaries which is why our response has to be co-ordinated across agencies and through international co-operation.

“We continue to build our relationships with law enforcement agencies in other jurisdictions such as the Romanian Authorities and we continue to develop these partnerships through the National Crime Agency. International co-operation has never been more important to allow us to tackle trafficking gangs wherever they are and wherever our investigation leads us.”