Twenty women forced into prostitution in brothels across Malaga province freed in police raids

National Police officers searched premises in Malaga city, San Pedro Alcántara, Estepona and Algeciras and found the victims, most of them from Colombia, were lured to the south of Spain by false promises of work

Irene Quirante

Malaga

Tuesday, 4 April 2023, 19:03

The promise of a better future encouraged 20 women to leave Colombia for Malaga, but the reality once they arrived was very different. They were forced into prostitution and ordered to work for days without any rest, obliged to remain available 24 hours a day subject to strict measures which even included recording their sexual encounters with hidden cameras. But the women were freed as part of a National Police operation ‘Muralla’, in which 34 people were arrested.

The investigation started in 2021 after officers found out about a group, made up of Spanish citizens and of South American origin, which had started to recruit vulnerable women on the Costa del Sol. Officers found a perfectly organised network, according to the Malaga provincial polic headquarters, which deceived the victims, most of them from Colombia, by false promises of work.

The threat of not paying off the debt accrued with the criminal network for the payment of their trip to Spain kept them trapped in brothels throughout the province. The women were also forced to sell narcotic substances.

The organisation had several vehicle repair and scrapping businesses located between Malaga and Algeciras to give themselves a legal front.

In 14 searches carried out in private homes, brothels and workshops in Malaga city, San Pedro Alcántara, Estepona and Algeciras, officers seized 82,000 euros in cash, 600 grams of hashish, several doses of cocaine and "tucsi" (pink cocaine), a stolen car, prohibited weapons, recording cameras, mobile phones and fake documentation.

The 34 people arrested face charges for alleged human trafficking, prostitution, false documentation, illegal occupation of property and illegal possession of weapons, among others.

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