The Sun: the number of children being trafficked into Britain for prostitution is rising.
In Britain, the number of children brought into the country for prostitution is growing, writes The Sun. Most of them are girls from Romania who are lured by “admirers” from England. Some victims are taken by slave traffickers at such a young age that they cannot remember how old they are.
Sophie Jane Baker
Some victims are trafficked at such a young age they can’t remember how old they are and dentists are forced to determine it by their teeth
Trump, Musk, Prince Andrew: Epstein’s mistress burned a hundred more celebrity paedophile partygoers
For teenage girl Mara, the promise of an exciting new life in Britain with a charming young man who charmed her online seemed like a dream come true. But following the dream nearly killed the young Romanian – her lover turned out to be a human trafficker, after which she was repeatedly raped by strangers and brutally beaten with a curtain rod. Mara’s story, though horrific, is far from uncommon in Britain, where the number of victims of modern slavery is at an all-time high.
Last year, authorities recorded 19,125 potential victims – 13 per cent more than in 2023 (16,990). Now The Sun has learnt how Romanian traffickers are luring increasingly young victims into the country and then “delivering them like food” through disgusting online “orders”. Behind the walls of ordinary homes, girls as young as 12 are forced to have sex with 20 men a day, the latter’s sick fantasies fuelled by a disturbing wave of “barely legal” pornography.
Night after night, Mara, then 19, was transported from one city to another, where she was sexually abused while her once-loving partner lived large on the money she earned. He and other traffickers spent the money on lavish parties, cars, houses and designer clothes, threatening the terrified girl with murder if she dared to return to her home country of Romania.
Mara (name changed) bravely told The Sun: ‘It was a nightmare. In every house I was taken to, I prayed, ‘God, if I go in there, who knows if I’ll be able to come out’.” One day [a trader] beat me with a metal ledge. They said that if I went back to Romania, they would kill me.
Experts tell The Sun that while Britain has long been a top destination for Romanian criminal gangs involved in human trafficking, the age of the victims is a growing concern. Prominent British barrister Marcus Johnstone states: “The younger the person, the higher the fee that can be asked of the client.”
Sold at an ‘inflated’ rate as ‘fresh meat’, some victims are trafficked at such a young age that they can’t remember how old they are and dentists are forced to determine it by their teeth. Others are beaten so brutally that they cannot walk or even crawl.
Offline, Romanian mafia groups, which are among the criminal networks that make more than £100,000 a year from a single victim, roam the country’s streets unceremoniously. “Such gangs have absolutely no fear of the police,” adds Marcus, who specialises in sex crime at PCD Solicitors. – Crime pays off, and sex offences pay off even more.”
In contrast, victims of criminal gangs are isolated from society. Women and girls are forced into homes and raped over and over again to ‘pay off’ imaginary debts. “The scale of the problem is enormous,” says Laura, a social services and criminal justice officer at International Justice Mission UK (IJM), the anti-slavery charity that helped Mara. – “Every police station in the UK is investigating multiple cases of Romanian sex trafficking.
‘Premium’ prices for minors
Previous police raids in Leicestershire and Northumberland have revealed that up to 86% of women working in some British brothels are from Romania. The frightening statistics show that around half of all victims of trafficking in Romania are children. Among those who are sexually exploited, more than 90 per cent are girls.
Earlier this year, a TheSun investigation revealed how ephebophilia – the sexual attraction of adults to 15-19 year olds – is on the rise in Britain, amid a wave of “barely legal” pornography popularised by controversial stars such as Bonnie Blue and related websites. However, it has recently emerged that the number of paedophiles going to prison for possessing child abuse images is falling, prompting experts to warn: ‘The problem is getting bigger and the punishment is getting lighter’.
Disgustingly, traffickers purposely target children from disadvantaged families and poor neighbourhoods, playing on their dreams of a “better life”. In some tragic cases, impoverished Romanian parents themselves give their children to traffickers because the “minors” bring higher payouts from British clients.
Lawyer AdamJones of HD Claims told The Sun: ‘We are seeing an alarming rise in the number of Romanian girls and women being trafficked into the UK for sexual exploitation – often under the guise of a better life. What is particularly appalling is that it is not just strangers who are using seduction tactics. In some cases the traffickers are known to the victims.”
Marcus adds: “Airlines are unknowingly acting as taxis, taking women to the UK, often accompanied by male ‘handlers’.” Once there, the girls are drawn into the dark world of human trafficking, which generates almost £180bn for criminals worldwide.
Lover’s tricks
For many sex slaves, exploitation begins with “love” – or a fake version of it. So-called “lovers” – often adult men – deceive girls into believing they care about them. Stalking them outside Romanian schools, on social media and gaming platforms, they tell the girls that they are “beautiful” and “smart” in an attempt to recruit them for sex work. By showering the victim with attention and gifts, the trafficker pretends to be the perfect partner. But in reality, he is luring the gullible girl into a “toxic, manipulative” relationship.
Laura explains, “Contrary to the stereotypical image of traffickers as violent kidnappers, those who use the lover method are often charming and calculating. They spend months and sometimes even a year or more pretending to be loving partners.” Some traffickers, as in Mara’s case, invite victims to the UK to live together. Others make false promises of legal work or study. Laura adds: “It all starts with what seems like the perfect relationship – a loving, attentive partner who offers everything they’ve dreamed of. This is what makes the method so dangerous.”
Last September, an OCG was sentenced to 16 years in prison for human trafficking: it brought a Romanian woman from France to Britain on the promise of a well-paid job as a cleaner. The woman was kept in a flat in Oldham, Manchester, and forced to “work off in kind” a six thousand euro housing debt. She was forced to have sex with several men every night, while her tormentors profited in the meantime.
The group split online payments from customers among themselves – around £1,000 a night – disguising the transactions with labels like “FAMILY” or “GIFT”, police said. Detective Chief Inspector Andy Fink, of Oldham’s crime investigation unit, said the victim’s human rights “have been cruelly taken away since her arrival in the UK. This case is a grim reminder that modern slavery exists here in Greater Manchester.”
“More Than Horror”
Like countless other girls, survivor Samara could not go out on her own. She had no access to money or documents and could not contact her family back home. Here’s what she told The Sun: “I remember the first night I was on the street, I was brutally beaten because I didn’t want to get into someone’s car. It wasn’t just horror, it was more than that.”
Jessica McDowell, from the charity CARE in London, says: “The average age of trafficked girls is 14. They are taken away from their families, stripped of their passports and other documents, and then raped and exploited by British men.”
To increase isolation, girls from the same group are placed in different locations. Laura adds: “Usually three or four traffickers run multiple locations – exploitation rooms – with one girl in each. This limits the victims’ ability to socialise or plan to escape.”
To force girls to comply, traffickers threaten them with extreme violence or deportation, warning, “If the police catch you, you will be in trouble.” They also play on the fear of embarrassing the family. “[They say,] ‘We’ll tell your family that you’re in prostitution,'” Laura says. – In countries like Romania, the stigmatisation of women is strong, and the fear is paralysing.”
“Like ordering takeaway food”
In England and Wales, prostitution itself is legal. But in recent years, legal experts have noted a “multiple increase in online sex offences”: traffickers can now advertise their victims to potential customers online. “Similar to ordering takeaway food, women, girls and children can now be ordered online for sexual assault,” says Marcus. – “Mentors, like couriers, can deliver your ‘order’ in one click.”
Earlier this year a court heard the case of 14 Romanian women in their 20s and 30s who were brought to South Yorkshire, Norfolk and London to work in the sex industry. The victims were advertised online and then brought to clients’ homes.
Valentine Badica (39), Christian Damascene (35) and Ionica Badica (34) from Newcastle were among the ‘dangerous’ members of the group behind the scheme. Despite the shocking offences, the three received less than three years in prison each. Four other gang members received suspended sentences.
Marcus adds: “Over the years as a criminal defence lawyer I have come across many people for whom crime is a business. There are good years and bad years. Prison is just an occupational hazard for them. The financial gain outweighs it. Short sentences don’t stop criminal gangs.”
For many sex slaves, escape seems impossible – especially if they become pregnant. Laura recounts: “In one case a few years ago, traffickers tried to force a victim to have a forced abortion through beating. They needed her to work rather than carry the child. The abortion failed. Mother and child survived, but the trauma of such an event is unimaginable.”
In another case, a desperate woman jumped off a balcony to escape from a pimp. But even those who manage to escape struggle with lifelong trauma. While women and girls are exploited sexually, boys from Romania are forced to work petty crime in gangs that use their profits to build posh mansions.
Lori Cohen, head of PACT (Protect All Children from Trafficking), told The Sun that all trafficked children suffer “immeasurable harm” – physically and psychologically. “I have seen their suffering,” Laurie said of young victims around the world. – One was trafficked at such an early age that she didn’t even know her age at the time of rescue. The dentist determined her age from her teeth – 12 years old – but we assume she was first sold at five. Another, 13 years old but looking 10 due to emaciation, hoped the buyers would show pity and help her escape. Instead, they paid more for ‘fresh meat’.”
In 2023, the British government announced a new, joint anti-trafficking action plan with Romania, which they said would better protect “potential victims of exploitation”. Security Minister Sarah Dines said at the time: “The UK is in a strong position to tackle human trafficking and modern slavery. I was honoured to discuss with my Romanian colleagues how we can work together to stamp out this terrible crime.”
However, sex slaves continue to suffer. Adam adds: “We must act on both fronts: preventing abductions in Romania through awareness raising and increased child protection, and in the UK, more victim support and speedy justice.”
A new beginning
For Mara, endless nights of exploitation in UK cities are a thing of the past. She is now the proud and loving mother of a little girl. “I don’t have nightmares anymore,” says Mara, who has already testified in court several times since escaping from her tormentors. Her courage helped put the traffickers behind bars. – I have a healthy child, I am trying to find a stable job and recover.
Her main dream now is that no other girl will ever go through what she went through. “There are other girls who are still suffering like I once did,” Mara says. – Don’t ever give up. This is your dignity and no one has the right to trample it.”
A spokesperson for the UK Home Office told The Sun: ‘We are determined to tackle the horrific crimes of human trafficking and modern slavery and will continue to work both nationally and abroad to bring all vile criminals to justice. The Minister for Security recently visited Romania to emphasise the importance of co-operation on this issue and to reaffirm the UK’s commitment to protecting the innocent victims of this horrific trade.”
InoSMI
