{"id":215059,"date":"2023-10-03T20:09:04","date_gmt":"2023-10-03T20:09:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestwnews.com\/?p=215059"},"modified":"2023-10-03T20:09:04","modified_gmt":"2023-10-03T20:09:04","slug":"cops-liken-busting-uk-citys-pop-up-brothels-to-catching-al-capone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestwnews.com\/world-news\/cops-liken-busting-uk-citys-pop-up-brothels-to-catching-al-capone\/","title":{"rendered":"Cops liken busting UK city’s pop-up brothels to ‘catching Al Capone’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Police say they are taking an "Al Capone approach" to bringing down pop-up brothels in a bustling UK town.<\/p>\n

Specialist officers in Hull have just finished a three-week campaign to raise awareness of the problem and have even made some arrests. Detective Sergeant Rich Kirk, who heads the Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking (MSHT) team, told Hull Live: "For us, our work is 365 days a year, but this period has been about raising awareness.<\/p>\n

"We have made a couple of arrests and visited two or three places," he added. "We want to continue raising awareness, which is what we have been doing in the last few weeks."<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Life on 'terrifying' estate blighted by public sex acts, 'crack dens' and poo<\/b><\/p>\n

Pop-up brothels are usually set up through short-term rentals in flats or houses, often without the property owners' knowledge. They then advertise their services online. Many of them will reel in customers using one of two "escort" websites.<\/p>\n

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DS Kirk and his team have recently made two arrests in London following a joint operation with the Met Police. A 20-year-old man and a 45-year-old woman were taken into custody on suspicion of trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, as well as assault and controlling prostitution in the Humber region.<\/p>\n

However, the team have their work cut out when it comes to formally accusing suspects. It can be difficult to press modern slavery charges, so cops are instead charging defendants with financial crimes \u2013 just as US authorities jailed infamous gangster Al Capone for tax evasion, a story later immortalised in the hit film The Untouchables.<\/p>\n

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