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NCA conducts raids and arrests as part of crackdown on child trafficking
28 June 2021
Modern slavery
United Kingdom
Ongoing
National Crime Agency (NCA)
Social
38 individuals
Key Facts:
The NCA is leading operations targeting child traffickers; in the week of 28 June 2021, law enforcement identified 99 potential victims (not all children) and arrested 38 individuals for offences including drug or sexual-related exploitation.
During that week, police attended London rail stations as it was presumed children were being forced to work as pick pockets there. Officers also searched a suspected brothel in East London – while no children were encountered during the search, the police intend to take steps to close the premises and safeguard people due to reports of anti-social behaviour and poor site conditions.
The Department of Work and Pensions is also investigating whether people at that address are making fraudulent claims. To discover potential victims of trafficking, Border Force officers were conducting additional checks at the Channel Tunnel.
Nearly 5,000 children, in the year ending 2020, were logged to the National Referral Mechanism as potential victims of trafficking.
NCA press release
