Police swoop and detain six Romanian prostitutes in raids on brothels run in the suburbs

• Police detained six prostitutes yesterday after raids in London
• The first was located in a semi-detached house near a church in Harrow
• Another was found in a flat above a charity shop near Rayners Lane Tube
• One, a mother-of-three, said she was trying to give her children a better life

By CHRIS PLEASANCE

Published: 09:57 EST, 18 January 2014 | Updated: 14:50 EST, 18 January 2014

Police detained six Romanian prostitutes yesterday following raids on two brothels in London.

Two women were found in a semi-detached house two doors away from a church in Harrow, north west London, while another four were caught in a flat above a charity shop near Rayners Lane Tube station.

'Crystal', 26 and a mother-of-three, was caught having sex with a client when police arrived at the first property.

Mother-of-three 'Crystal', 26, was caught having sex with a client in a house just two doors away from a church in Harrow, north west London

She said she left her toddler twins and eight-month-old baby with a nanny while she worked a 12 hour shift.

Police detained six prostitute during the raids, but as the women are here legally and their clients will not provide sworn statements, they were released with a caution

Speaking to the Daily Express, she said: 'I left Romania because it is very bad and here I can earn good money - sometimes £2,000 a week.

'I do it for a better life for me and my children. When I am with a customer the only thing I think about is my children.'

She added that she didn't want to stay in London, and was only raising enough money to move back home and start a business.

In the second brothel 'Sally', 24, who has a four-year-old son, said she needs the money to survive, but tells her boyfriend she works as a cleaner because otherwise he would kill her.

All the women said they had left behind abject poverty in Romania for a better life in the UK, and claimed they had looked for legitimate work but were turned down because of their race.

Police closed the brothels, but only gave the women formal warning as they are all here legally and it is unlikely that any of their clients would testify against them leading to criminal charges.

Officers also found a stash of illegal tobacco and alcohol worth thousands of pounds in separate raids on several corner shops.

Harrow has become a magnet for Eastern European immigrants to the UK, with 5,000 already said to be living in the borough.

These women, aged between 21 and 26, were found in a flat above a charity shop and say they left behind abject poverty for a better life in the UK

Despite that Dr Ion Jinga , Romanian ambassador to London, claims the predicted rush of his countrymen to the UK after EU border controls were relaxed has not happened.

The diplomat also says that ten companies have contacted his London embassy trying to get Romanians to work for them, and they have been forced to direct them to the Jobcentre.