A brothel keeper who arranged for women to be trafficked around the UK as prostitutes has been jailed -after being snared by text messages advertising his services. Jie Ke Wang, 48, earned £500-a-week operating a "callout service" - where clients would request a woman be sent to their address for sex work.
A court heard other girls were "rotated" around the country in order to keep a "fresh" supply for clients. Undercover officers discovered Wang managing a brothel at his home in Masshouse Plaza, in Birmingham city centre, when they raided the swanky apartment block.
Further investigations of his mobile phones following the arrest revealed his involvement in trafficking a dozen women all around the UK. Wang would haggle with customers on prices as he played a "managerial" role in deciding where they would go to work in the country.
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He would store contacts in his phone not as names but as areas such as Cov (Coventry) and Not (Nottingham). One text message recovered from Wang’s phone from a client read: “Do you have anyone available tonight.”
Others from Wang ask: "You want me to find you a proper Chinese girlfriend?" and "Pay a little bit extra or come back earlier."
Wang also sent a photograph of one woman and arranged for her to spend two hours at a hotel in Birmingham for £300. Another message exchange revealed how one girl was sent to Wrexham for an overnight "outcall" at cost of £600 for eight hours.
Wang admitted arranging travel of someone with a view to exploitation and was jailed for four years and five months last Wednesday (24/5).
Detective Inspector Al Teague, West Midlands Police's Force Priorities Team, said: “Wang’s business was the sexual exploitation of women and a form of modern slavery.
“He would negotiate the terms of the encounters the girls would have without consulting them.
“These are not victimless crimes – women were being exploited for financial gain, and we will always look to bring those involved in crimes like this to justice.”
The force said a number of the women who were working for Wang have now been referred on for help and support by other organisations.
A police spokesperson added: "The sentencing comes as we launched a major operation to target serious and organised crime in the West Midlands - Operation Target.
"We’re taking a defiant stand against a range of serious and organised crime offences – from drug dealing and burglary, to cyber-crime and fraud.
"Officers will be using local intelligence, seizing goods, carrying out warrants and targeting offenders as part of Op Target’s ongoing crackdown against serious and organised crime."
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