Swedes ran brothel in the Philippines

Two Swedish men in their thirties have been arrested in the Philippines on charges of human trafficking. The accused, who are alleged to have forced women to perform sexual acts in front of a web camera, face possible lifetime prison sentences, writes Expressen.

• Five year sentence for Swede's child sex crimes (27 Dec 11)
• Swede 'burned to death' in Bali hotel: report (24 Dec 11)
• Cybersex Swedes claim they did 'nothing wrong' (13 May 11)

Following a raid on the brothel last Thursday, the police say they found eighteen women on the premises, some of whom are thought to be under age, reports the Philippine daily Sun Star. They will be called as witnesses when the trial begins.

One of the women was working as a domestic servant when she was offered another, well-paid job. She explained to Sun Star that she had no idea what the work entailed. When she learned that it involved undressing in front of a webcam it was already too late to back out. She said that she was paid the equivalent of about 2,500 Swedish kronor a month.

Another four people, reported to be employed by the Swedes, were also arrested.

The Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs has spent the day seeking confirmation of reports about the arrested men.

“We are trying to establish whether the Consulate-General in Manila has been informed. When we know the full facts of the case, we’ll try to get in touch directly with the men or their lawyer,” said Petra Hansson of the Ministry's Press Service to TT.