Nadia McDonald
National Police have freed 20 women who were being sexually exploited by a criminal gang in the Malaga area. The criminal organization forced the women to carry out sex work under monitoring by a hidden surveillance system and pressured the victims into selling drugs to their clients.
A total of 34 people were arrested in connection with the alleged crimes of human trafficking, forced prostitution and false documentation across Andalucia.
Police carried out 14 searches in the Malaga towns of Marbella and Estepona and in Algeciras, Cadiz. The searches led to 82,000 euros in cash being seized as well as 600 grams of hashish, several doses of cocaine and ‘tusi’ (pink cocaine), a stolen vehicle, illegal weapons, recording cameras and false documents.
Operation ‘Muralla’, which began in 2021, found that vulnerable women of Spanish and South American origin, in particular from Colombia, were being recruited under false promises of work. The victims were subsequently exploited for labour and prostitution purposes under tight controls which included video surveillance.
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