This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-25068525
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| London 'slavery' case women met 'in collective' | London 'slavery' case women met 'in collective' |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Two of three women who were allegedly held as slaves in London for at least 30 years met a man who has been arrested via a collective, police say. | |
| Officers said they met "through a shared political ideology" before living together. | |
| Three women were rescued last month from a house in London after one of them called a charity asking for help. | |
| A couple, arrested on Thursday, migrated from India and Tanzania in the 1960s, said police. | |
| Police are making house-to-house inquiries in the Brixton area of south London as part of the investigation. | Police are making house-to-house inquiries in the Brixton area of south London as part of the investigation. |
| Inquiries are being carried out in and around Peckford Place. | |
| 'Gain their trust' | |
| The alleged victims - a 30-year-old British woman, a 57-year-old Irish woman and a 69-year-old Malaysian woman - are now in the care of a specialist non-governmental organisation after they were rescued from what police said was a "residential address" last month. | The alleged victims - a 30-year-old British woman, a 57-year-old Irish woman and a 69-year-old Malaysian woman - are now in the care of a specialist non-governmental organisation after they were rescued from what police said was a "residential address" last month. |
| Police said the 30-year-old woman had a birth certificate but no other official papers. | Police said the 30-year-old woman had a birth certificate but no other official papers. |
| The case came to light after the Irish woman rang Freedom Charity to say she had been held against her will. | The case came to light after the Irish woman rang Freedom Charity to say she had been held against her will. |
| A couple, both aged 67 and thought to be married, were arrested on Thursday on suspicion of immigration offences and they have been released on police bail until January. | A couple, both aged 67 and thought to be married, were arrested on Thursday on suspicion of immigration offences and they have been released on police bail until January. |
| Police had previously said they had also been arrested in the 1970s but have not revealed what it was in connection with. | Police had previously said they had also been arrested in the 1970s but have not revealed what it was in connection with. |
| In a statement, Cdr Steve Rodhouse of the Metropolitan Police, said: "We believe that two of the victims met the male suspect in London through a shared political ideology, and that they lived together at an address that you could effectively call a 'collective'. | In a statement, Cdr Steve Rodhouse of the Metropolitan Police, said: "We believe that two of the victims met the male suspect in London through a shared political ideology, and that they lived together at an address that you could effectively call a 'collective'. |
| "Somehow that collective came to an end and the women ended up continuing to live with the suspects. | "Somehow that collective came to an end and the women ended up continuing to live with the suspects. |
| "How this resulted in the women living in this way for over 30 years is what are seeking to establish, but we believe emotional and physical abuse has been a feature of all the victims' lives." | "How this resulted in the women living in this way for over 30 years is what are seeking to establish, but we believe emotional and physical abuse has been a feature of all the victims' lives." |
| He said when the women were removed from the house on 25 October it was agreed "that police would not at that stage take any action". | He said when the women were removed from the house on 25 October it was agreed "that police would not at that stage take any action". |
| "Since that date we have been working to gain their trust and evidence, that came to fruition on 21 November when we were in a position to make arrests," he said. | "Since that date we have been working to gain their trust and evidence, that came to fruition on 21 November when we were in a position to make arrests," he said. |
| 'Emotionally fragile' | |
| "Between 25 October and 21 November none of the three victims were reported missing to the police." | |
| Cdr Rodhouse said the women were "emotionally fragile and highly vulnerable". | Cdr Rodhouse said the women were "emotionally fragile and highly vulnerable". |
| Aneeta Prem, founder of Freedom Charity, told BBC News the three women are "quite stressed about the amount of detail that is being revealed". | |
| She said they were "very concerned about the media attention" and they are worried that they will be found. | |
| Ms Prem said: "These women have had traumatic and disturbing experiences, which they have revealed to us. | |
| "What needs to happen now is that the three victims, who have begun a long process of recovery, are able to go through their rehabilitation undisturbed, without being identified." | "What needs to happen now is that the three victims, who have begun a long process of recovery, are able to go through their rehabilitation undisturbed, without being identified." |