Suspected trafficking victims intercepted

Almost 100 suspected trafficking victims have been intercepted by a specialist border force at Glasgow Airport, it has been revealed.

The Home Office Border Force team has interviewed more than 300 potential victims at the airport since the start of Operation Outrun in November 2016.

About a third were refused entry to the UK and returned to their home country after interviews raised fears they were destined for work in the sex industry.

Of those passengers who were intercepted by safeguarding and trafficking officers, more than 250 were Romanians and fewer than 50 were male.

One case involved a victim of Steven Mathieson, who was jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years for murdering Romanian Luciana Maurer and abducting and raping two other escorts at his Falkirk home in December 2014.

Border Force stopped one of the women he raped from entering the UK again and took steps to ensure she was safe and not returning to the sex industry.

In another case, a 23-year-old Romanian woman was prevented from entering the country after arriving with no money, few possessions and no return ticket.

She told officers she was visiting her Romanian boyfriend but checks revealed the address he was taking her to was home to 13 men, two of whom had convictions for sexual offences.

Many suspected victims were young women with little money, who did not know who they were meeting or where they were going and had been promised nonexistent jobs.