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| New crackdown on sex trafficking | New crackdown on sex trafficking |
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| A new UK-wide crackdown on human trafficking is being launched by police forces and law enforcement agencies. | A new UK-wide crackdown on human trafficking is being launched by police forces and law enforcement agencies. |
| The operation aims to break up and prosecute gangs who force women and children - most of them from abroad - to work in the sex industry. | |
| It will also aim to help victims and raise public awareness of the problem. | It will also aim to help victims and raise public awareness of the problem. |
| But groups working with foreign victims say there is not enough support and many face being returned to the countries they were trafficked from. | But groups working with foreign victims say there is not enough support and many face being returned to the countries they were trafficked from. |
| Sold for £500 | Sold for £500 |
| The operation, Codenamed Pentameter 2, will involve all UK police forces and the dedicated UK Human Trafficking Centre in Sheffield. | The operation, Codenamed Pentameter 2, will involve all UK police forces and the dedicated UK Human Trafficking Centre in Sheffield. |
| Aidan McQuade, of Anti-Slavery International, has called on the government to ensure sufficient resources are made available during the course of the operation. | |
| The first Operation Pentameter in 2006 freed 84 women and teenage girls from brothels and massage parlours and led to 232 arrests. | The first Operation Pentameter in 2006 freed 84 women and teenage girls from brothels and massage parlours and led to 232 arrests. |
| Officers visited 515 premises connected with the sex industry. | Officers visited 515 premises connected with the sex industry. |
| They found women, mostly from eastern Europe, sold for figures ranging between £500 and £8,000. | They found women, mostly from eastern Europe, sold for figures ranging between £500 and £8,000. |
| The operation also led to the creation of the Human Trafficking Centre. | The operation also led to the creation of the Human Trafficking Centre. |
| Pentameter 2 is likely to be more extensive than its predecessor because the problem of trafficking has intensified since last year. | Pentameter 2 is likely to be more extensive than its predecessor because the problem of trafficking has intensified since last year. |
| Helpline | Helpline |
| It will be launched by the Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Police, Dr Tim Brain, at the Home Office on Wednesday. | It will be launched by the Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Police, Dr Tim Brain, at the Home Office on Wednesday. |
| Ahead of its launch, some police raids have already taken place and officers have begun gathering intelligence about "internal trafficking", in which people born in the UK are sold, moved around and exploited by criminal gangs. | Ahead of its launch, some police raids have already taken place and officers have begun gathering intelligence about "internal trafficking", in which people born in the UK are sold, moved around and exploited by criminal gangs. |
| A new telephone information line will be set up to give advice to immigration staff and social workers attempting to identify victims of trafficking. | A new telephone information line will be set up to give advice to immigration staff and social workers attempting to identify victims of trafficking. |
| During the first operation, officers handed out leaflets at entry points to the UK, including airports and ports. | During the first operation, officers handed out leaflets at entry points to the UK, including airports and ports. |
| They were aimed directly at women themselves offering advice about how to get help. | They were aimed directly at women themselves offering advice about how to get help. |