I had been in Los Angeles for less than a month when I received the call from a concerned neighbour back home in London. That tenant of yours certainly has an appetite for the ladies. I had rented my apartment to Alan and Ada, a respectable young Chinese couple. They agreed to rent my place for three months, which coincided perfectly with my trip to the US. When I returned, Alan greeted me at the door but refused to let me in.
Over his shoulder, I spotted Ada berating a pair of scantily clad Asian girls. A couple of ropey-looking men sat patiently in my hallway, which appeared to be doubling as a waiting room. Like a growing number of part-time landlords, I had been well and truly screwed over by a worrying new part of the underworld. Something similar is happening in parts of Cornwall and the Lake District. There are currently at least active UK police operations into modern slavery involving sexual exploitation.
Girls are being trafficked from as far away as China, Vietnam and Nigeria. The report claims the government is determined to end modern slavery and human trafficking by , but with the growing popularity of short-term rental sites such as Airbnb they will have their work cut out. In an attempt to cut demand, the group has called for the UK to follow other European countries by criminalising people who pay for sex.
Half of those who buy sex said they would definitely, probably or possibly change their behaviour if it became a criminal offence.
Meanwhile, gangsters continue to run amok, filling cheap rental homes with vulnerable girls they have lured over to the UK with the promise of a better life. The problem becomes particularly acute during major sporting events, when there is often a spike in the number of illicit sex dens set up to cater for inebriated fans. And throughout the Olympics, boroughs close to the action such as Newham and Tower Hamlets saw an increase in temporary knocking-shops.
