The National Police carried out an operation against human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation in a residential complex in the Arganzuela neighborhood, which led to the arrest of 16 people, including clients and apartment managers. The victims were women who worked as prostitutes in several apartments in the area where they also had timers on the doors to offer their services and were monitored via security cameras.
The operation began at the end of October, when an inspection was carried out at a five-storey building in Arganzuela, which was suspicious due to the number of alleged customers coming in and out every day. Prostitution services were offered on several floors of that building.
Upon entering the homes, the officers found that some women had a timer on the door of their rooms, with which the apartment manager could control the time between a client’s entry and exit and the duration of the services. Furthermore, they monitored the victims’ movements with security cameras installed at the entrances to the common areas.
This discovery led to seven other checks on premises located on the same street as the building, which may have had some bearing on the criminal activities taking place on these floors. The result of the operation was 16 people arrested for violating immigration law, divided into six clients and 10 women who managed the apartments. 140 people linked to the investigation have also been identified.
“The main objective of planning these operations is the identification of possible victims or perpetrators of human trafficking”, underlines the State Police in a press release released to the media. The operation was attended by agents from the Immigration and Border Brigade, the Police Intervention Unit, the Aerial Media Unit, the Dog Guides and operators from the Labor and Social Security Inspectorate of Madrid.
The National Police recalls that “the most important way to help the victims of this crime is to bring the fact to the attention of the authorities” and invites people who know a possible victim or who are experiencing the situation to report it by calling 900 10 50 90, by email at trafficking@policia.es or through any other contact channel of the National Police and security services.
