Two brothel companies in Canberra are suspected of importing sexual service. From Thailand (Australian Broadcasting Corporation Photo)
On Monday, two brothel in Canberra were raided by police on suspicion of supplying sexual service, from Thai importers, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. A 58-year-old woman was arrested and denied bail.
Police on Monday, with the assistance of (Australian Border Force) officers from the Border Service and (Worksafe ACT) investigators from the Capital Territory work Security Service, executed a search warrant for both Pink Girls and Chok Dee Massage`s brothel, located in (Fyshwick), Fishvik, at the same time. The suspect, Sucson (Jamaree Suksom), was arrested.
She will face five counts of allowing illegal (non-citizen) work in the capital territory security court (ACT Magistrates Court), involving five different women, who have been denied bail.
According to documents handed in by the police to court, police officers also seized items for investigation involving forced labour and possible trafficking in persons.
Federal prosecutor Eddie Chen (Eddie Chen) told court that the raid was part of a police effort to investigate unsafe practices in Canberra`s sex industry.
At present, the two raided brothel has been closed.
Two brothel companies in Canberra are suspected of importing sexual service. From Thailand (Australian Broadcasting Corporation Photo)
Security investigators say they found fire hazards and high levels of mold in the brothel.
Police also found brothel "unhygienic" and out of repair, according to court documents.
Meanwhile, police are investigating possible trafficking in human beings. Of the five women detained for immigration offences, one said she was in debt of A $50000, Eddy Chen said. In addition, three of them were found to have stayed in Australia illegally, while the other two were illegally working on tourist visas.
Eddy Chen told the court that contacting the Thai authorities could be a major direction in the investigation. "there seems to be a phenomenon of importing people from Thailand to do sexual service (," he said.
In addition, according to court documents, Pink Girls and Chok Dee Massage, multiple sex workers identified Sucson as the owner and operator of the two brothel families. But in a police inquiry, Sucson denied that he owned Pink Girls, and said he had not carried out immigration checks on employees.
