World News | Belgian police seize $1.6 million in sex trafficking investigation

BRUSSELS, Feb. 8 (AP) – About 1.5 million euros (1.6 million euros) were seized in a Belgian raid targeting a suspected criminal organization that sent Chinese women to Europe and forced them into prostitution, the federal prosecutor’s office said Wednesday. U.S. dollars) in cash.

In addition, investigators seized four tons of coins of unknown value, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said Belgian police seized several buildings during raids in Antwerp, Charleroi, Leuven, Neuchateau and Brussels.

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About 300 police officers took part in Tuesday’s raid targeting the traffickers following a two-year investigation. The prosecutor’s office described the operation as one of the largest against traffickers in Belgium in recent years.

A total of 27 persons were detained, of whom 9 appeared in court and charged with human trafficking and money laundering. Three suspects have Belgian nationality, while the rest are of Chinese descent.

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Police raided more than two dozen locations across Belgium and found 20 alleged victims, all from China. Searches were also carried out in Spain and Switzerland and the two were detained, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Prosecutors say more and more Chinese sex workers are present in Belgium, especially in the capital Brussels. They said the targeted criminal organization allegedly recruited women in China and transferred them to Europe, where they were “sexually exploited” and forced to hand over most of their earnings.

The prostitution rings allegedly used online rental platforms, hotels or vacation homes, and websites dedicated to booking appointments with pornographic ads, prosecutors said, adding that victims often moved from place to place across the continent.

Some of the victims were placed in a specialized reception center, prosecutors said.

Eurojust, the EU’s judicial cooperation agency, and Europol, the EU’s criminal agency, are involved in the investigation. (Associated Press)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)