ITAR-TASS News Agency, Russia
April 7, 2007 Saturday 02:36 PM EST

Spanish police detain members of int’l ring trading in people

Police in the Spanish province of Catalonia have detained members of
an international criminal ring that traded in people.

The detention took place in the resort region of Costa Brava, police
officials said.

The grouping that engaged in trafficking East-European women for
sexual slavery in Spain included citizens of Albania, Russia, Armenia
and residents of Kosovo.

A spokesman for the Russian Consulate General in Barcelona told
Itar-Tass Saturday there had been no official notifications on the
issue from the police or local agencies of power, although Russian
diplomats managed to use personal connections and to find out that
three men from among the criminals had Russian passports.

“Also, there are Russians among the 40 released women whom the
criminals forced into prostitution,” he said.