Four people have been detained in northern Poland and charged with human trafficking and forcing women to work as prostitutes.

A dozen Polish women, who applied for a cleaning job in Germany, have been sold to escort agencies by a human trafficking ring from northern Poland.

Police detained two women and two men who recruited young women in financial straits, promising to give them employment in Germany.

As soon as they crossed the Polish border, they took away their IDs, saying they will arrange the formalities themselves. The unsuspecting women were then placed in escort agencies and forced to work as prostitutes.

“The women were intimidated and kept in a closely guarded house,” Jan Kosciuk, spokesman for police in northern Poland said. What made matters worse, they did not speak German.

The detained persons, aged from 27 to 41, face from 3 to 15 years in prison.  

Women trafficking for sex is a thriving business in Europe, valued at 7 to 13 billion dollars. Over the past 10 years its profits rose by an estimated 400 percent. According to the United Nations, about half a million women in Europe are forced to work as prostitutes but the real figure may be much higher. (kk)