Three women have been rescued from a house in south London, with police investigating claims that they were held as “slaves” for over three decades.
Freedom Charity contacted the Metropolitan Police last month after they received a phone call from a distressed woman that she had been kept at a house against her will for over 30 years.
Speaking to Sky News, Aneeta Prem, founder of Freedom Charity, explained how women were able to walk out of the house at a pre-arranged time with the police on standby after talking and planning with the charity.
The women, a British woman, 30, and Irish woman, 57, and a Malaysian woman, 69, are now in safe accommodation and the Police have arrested a 67-year-old man and woman over the claims.
Officers said that there was no evidence of sexual abuse, although the women were forced to lead highly controlled lives, mostly indoors, which left the women highly traumatised.
Detective Inspector Kevin Hyland, from the Met police’s Human Trafficking Unit, said:
“We applaud the actions of Freedom Charity and are working in partnership to support these victims who appear to have been held for over 30 years. We have launched an extensive investigation to establish the facts surrounding these very serious allegations.
A television documentary on forced marriages relating to the work of the Freedom Charity was the catalyst that prompted one of the victims to call for help and led to their rescue.”
On Twitter, Aneeta Prem also praised the work of charity staff and their partners in getting the women safely to freedom: