Police visit two Rotherham car washes as part of modern slavery op

As part of Operation Bubbles officers visited the two unidentified car washes last Thursday (August 31) in a joint operation with Home Office immigration officers to safeguard potential victims.

Elsewhere in South Yorkshire, officers acted last Tuesday in response to reports a woman was being forced to work against her will at a massage parlour in Sheffield.

On Friday, following intelligence gathering by police and the Home Office, officers visited another address in Sheffield suspected of being used to run a brothel, with suspected links to organised immigration crime and modern slavery.

The modern slavery team also joined up with partners at the Changing Lives Netreach project to deliver activity to tackle violence against women and girls in South Yorkshire.

Det Chf Insp Anna Sedgwick said: “We know that modern slavery and exploitation are often hidden in plain sight within our communities and closer than people may think.

“Often workers are forced to work illegally and against their will, working long hours and often in hard conditions.

“Exploitation takes many forms and there is no typical victim of modern slavery.

“Victims can be men, women and children of all ages and from many different countries.

“It is normally more prevalent amongst the most vulnerable, minority or socially excluded groups.”

Planned operations to tackle modern slavery and identify potential vulnerable victims’ are delivered “week-in week-out”, she added.