Cavan brothel reported to be making €8,000 a week

A brothel, which had been in operation for months from an apartment in close proximity to Cavan town, was busted by Gardaí on last Wednesday morning as part of a massive nationwide operation against the trafficking of foreign women and prostitution. The ruthless individual behind the brothels, including the one in Cavan, is the same person that was running brothels in the centre of Cavan town last year and in another housing estate. Brothels were also raided in Mullingar, Athlone, Drogheda, Sligo, Newbridge, Kilkenny, Waterford and Enniscorthy. The pimp was making €100,000 a week from the nine brothels and it is estimated that clients in Cavan were forking out in the region of €8,000 a week to the working girls here. A number of Brazilian, Eastern Europe and Spanish girls were known to have worked as prostitutes from that location over the past six months. Men from all over the region from various strands of society had been flocking to the brothel. Gardaí subsequently released five people held in relation to the investigation and files are being prepared for the DPP. A man and a woman appeared in court in Wales over the weekend arising from a number of arrests there. Some of the information posted on websites suggested that beautiful Cavan girls were available at between €120 to €160 for 30 minutes and you were invited to "ride out the recession". The services on offer were varied at all the brothels that were established in Cavan town over the past two years by the same individual and included domination and handcuffing and one of the girls told gardaí that she was taken aback by the services Cavan men were demanding. 'They did not mind paying over the odds for bondage and numerous other extras.' The vulnerable girls employed in the brothels were taken away to safe locations by the gardaí. The network of contacts were operated by mobile phone and the internet. A number of locations in Northern Ireland were also being used as brothels by an organised crime gang through the internet. Gardaí believe the mastermind who is already wanted here on warrants in connection with another prostitution ring, has invested some of his profits in Bulgaria. Bank accounts and an account in a Credit Union are also being examined by CAB. His former wife, son, daughter and a number of friends were arrested by Gardaí in Bagenalstown. When you rang the mobile phone number it was answered in Wales and when you said that you required the service in Cavan, you were redirected to a girl on a mobile phone in Cavan. This was effectively a call centre in Milford Haven in Wales. Then you make your arrangements to meet the girl and all transactions were in cash, for services provided. The pimp always sourced new apartments or houses and rented them for a period of six months. With lots of new people coming and going, he hoped that callers to the apartment would not attract any suspicion. The 47-year old individual, originally from Carlow, had moved to Wales with a woman from South Africa and they were arrested by Welsh Police. Homes and offices of professional individuals were also raided and numerous other locations. Lap tops and mobile phones were taken away to be examined. A total of ten people were arrested in this operation targeting human trafficking. Four women and three men were arrested following the raids on the nine brothels. The PSNI arrested a man in County Down who is also suspected of being involved and a senior garda involved in the raids on the brothels in this region told The Anglo Celt that the violent pimp behind the running of the brothels was involved with a network of criminals and there was a lot of interlinking going on.