Police are targeting so-called “pop-up brothels” by adopting what one senior officer confirmed as an “Al Capone” approach to crime.

Humberside Police are seeking to get to grips with the problem by trying to nail offenders for financial crime, as opposed to going after them in respect of modern slavery offences.

In doing so, there would be distinct echoes of the tactics which saw infamous gangster Capone – played by Robert DeNiro in The Untouchables – successfully prosecuted from tax evasion.

Pop-up brothels are operated out of flats and houses via short-term rentals, generally without the knowledge of the property owners. They attract customers using through two online “escort” websites.

Detective Sergeant Rich Kirk, who heads the Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking (MSHT) team, told Hull Live: “When a criminal exploits someone it is not easy to prove modern slavery so we are looking at other means to bring them to justice.

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“Exploitation usually involves money, so we can carry out a financial investigation. The brothels are largely cash-based, so we can look at who the payments are being made to and whether they are being transferred.”

He continued: ‘We can then show whether someone actually has a legitimate income.

“We cannot always prove exploitation, but we can get them on things like proceeds of crime or money laundering. It is a bit like how they managed to get Al Capone.”

A three-week Humberside Police “intensification period” focusing on the issue of pop-up brothels has already seen tangible results.

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After a joint operation with the Met Police, a 20-year-old man and a 45-year-old woman were arrested in London on suspicion of trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, as well as assault and controlling prostitution in the Humber region.

DS Kirk, who urged members of the public to keep their eyes peeled for signs of pop-up brothels, added: “For us, our work is 365 days a year, but this period has been about raising awareness. We have made a couple of arrests and visited two or three places.

“We have started to see an increase in intelligence through working with partners.

“We are also getting some tip-offs through the modern slavery helpline. We are also continuing to monitor the adult services websites.

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“We had a spike in intelligence information when we highlighted this in the media last year, so we want to continue raising awareness, which is what we have been doing in the last few weeks.”

There were also signs that the proactive approach adopted by the police was working, DS Kirk stressed.

He explained: “The number of pop-up brothels peaked at around 230-240 across Humberside, but now it is down to around 100. I would like to think we have contributed to this fall in numbers.

“We don’t tend to go in and just close places down. Once we visit them, they tend to close down anyway. Our approach is not to criminalise the women. They are human beings and we have to remember that they are someone’s daughter, mum, etc.

“Not many women will admit to us they are being exploited as there can be a mistrust there. They fear they might be arrested or deported, but we hope that changes. However, they may confide in another agency or someone else. The problem is, they are very reliant on their exploiter.”

“We want to target those landlords who know what the property is being used for,” he said. If you have three women living in a property and each paying £200 a week when the rental value may only be £200 a week in total, then the landlord is benefitting.

“About 95 per cent of the woman are foreign nationals and they are not aware of the services available to help them. Many of from eastern Europe and we still have some from south Asia, but we have seen a big increase in women from South America. I can’t explain why that is.”

Police are encouraging anyone with suspicions to report them to Humberside Police on 101, in case of an emergency 999, or Crimestoppers 0800 555 111.

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