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Europe's largest people-smuggler, a Moldovan, forced thousands of women into prostitution to pay off their "debt." (File photo)

LONDON (Tiraspol Times) - A Moldovan people-smuggler who lured young girls to London for exploitation in the sex trade has been stripped of his property empire and cash fortune by a British Court, but with no help from Moldova which did not cooperate in the asset clampdown operation.

The London-based Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) has obtained a Civil Recovery Order in the High Court in London worth an estimated £750,000 (equivalent to $1,469,902 USD) against Gheorghe Virtosu from Moldova.
British Justice Tugendhat ruled in London's High Court that all of Gheorghe Virtosu’s wealth – including five properties and hundreds of thousands of pounds in cash – was the proceeds of crime and could be seized by the Assets Recovery Agency.

Virtosu, 31, who was born in Moldova, and was caught after authorities determined that he operated Europe's largest network of human sex trafficking, partly with the backing of Moldovan government officials. No involvement of Transdniestria (Transnistria, in Romanian) was mentioned in the case and there has never been any evidence of any organized human trafficking rings operating from the unrecognized country.

Gheorghe Virtosu first came to Britain in 1992, but also kept houses in France and Moldova. During his first twelve years in Britain, he only declared £10,000 in legitimate earnings. Property owned by Virtosu in France has also been seized. The only uncooperative country is Moldova, which has not helped with the investigation and which has not seized any of Gheorghe Virtosu's real estate.

In its case against the Moldovan people trafficker, the United Kingdom's Assets Recovery Agency proved to the court that Gheorghe Virtosu had obtained his assets through criminal activity, namely the human trafficking of people. The victims were young women from Eastern Europe (primarily from Moldova). In some cases, kids were sold as underage sex slaves. The victims were smuggled into France and onward into the UK where many were forced to work in brothels to repay their 'debts'.

The recoverable assets include the property at Crescent Way, Norbury London, SW16 and Thornton Heath, Croydon, some £11,000 in a number of bank accounts and a BMW X5 Sport Automatic. The Moldovan people-smuggler and his wife were also ordered to pay costs.

Moldova top country for people trafficking

As head of Europe's largest people trafficking ring, Virtosu has already been convicted in France of operating an organized gang which engaged in the illegal entrance or residence of a foreign national to a Schengen State, identity document forgery, receiving stolen goods, and aiding and abetting living on the proceeds of prostitution by supplying resources and enticement. France named him the gang leader and sentenced him to 8 years imprisonment. He was fined 500,000 Euros (approximately $750,000 USD) and had an apartment seized in France.

Nevertheless, once released the Moldovan sex trafficker would still have access to substantial assets which had been purchased with the proceeds of his illegal activities, namely people trafficking.

Now, the U.K. Assets Recovery Agency obtained recovery of the assets by showing that the large and numerous cash deposits in bank accounts used to purchase his assets were the proceeds of people trafficking.

Charlie Dickin, ARA Deputy Director of Operations said: "We successfully concluded this investigation after the French authorities were unable to pursue the UK assets in this case. Trafficking women for prostitution in this way is a modern form of slavery. Mr Virtosu had amassed significant assets from his unlawful activity."

Jane Earl, Director of the Agency said "The Agency uses its unique powers firmly and fairly to make sure that crime does not pay," noting that there are grounds to believe that assets have been acquired that could not have been funded from legitimate income. "Property Freezing Orders enable us to conduct comprehensive investigations knowing that assets cannot be disposed of before the Court determines whether, on the balance of probabilities, they have been acquired with the proceeds of crime."

On a per capita basis, Moldova is Europe's top country for people trafficking. Much of the illegal trade is supported by government officials who get a share of the profits. In 2007, an Amnesty International study revealed that the country is home to large-scale human trafficking rings which in many cases operate with government protection.

See also:
» Moldova: Lower prices behind sex slavery boom and child prostitution [1]
» Moldova police most corrupt, report reveals [2]
» Official involvement in Moldova's human trafficking and sex slave trade [3]