Wednesday, 11 February 2015 - 08:45
Human trafficking bust saves two women, seven arrested
The police arrested 7 suspects on Tuesday in various locations in the Netherlands and Hungary during an investigation into human trafficking, forced prostitution and money laundering. The police also found two women who they suspect are victims of human trafficking.
As part of this investigation the police raided three locations in Amsterdam and three houses in Hungary on Tuesday morning. The raids took place simultaneously so that the suspects could not warn each other. The police arrested 4 suspects in Amsterdam Centrum and Amsterdam West, three man aged 29, 31 and 45 years and a 38 year old woman. Three suspects (28, 44 and 47) were arrested in Hungary. The police have requested that these three suspects be extradited to the Netherlands. All suspects are accused of human trafficking, money laundering and forced prostitution and remain in custody. An additional 5 people were also questioned as suspects in Hungary.
The police also found two women (21 and 22 years old) during the raids in the Netherlands. The police suspect that they are victims of human trafficking and forced prostitution. They were taken to the police station for questioning and will receive the necessary help.
In addition to the arrests, the police also seized various goods. In the Netherlands 10 thousand euros in cash, a car, a scooter, computers, leases, laptops and mobile phones were confiscated. Mortgage notes with a n estimated value of 20 thousand euros, 2 thousand euros in cash, multiple mobile phones and valuable jewelry were confiscated in Hungary.
The investigation focuses on human traffickers and facilitators who make money from prostitution. The investigation found that unexplained money transfers from the Netherlands to Hungary happened between 2011 and 2014. there were also cash deposits in Dutch bank accounts with a total amount of approximately 200 thousand euros. The police are not ruling out the possibility that more arrests may occur.