23 January, Vitebsk /Olga Bogacheva - BELTA/. In the Vitebsk region, the detection rate of crimes related to human trafficking and associated offenses increased by 15% to 59 cases in 2011, including 26 of them classified as serious. This was announced today at a press conference by the Head of the Internal Affairs Directorate of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Alexander Naydenko, reports a BELTA correspondent. According to him, among the detected crimes, 10 were committed by a group of individuals and 6 by an organized criminal group. 61 criminal cases have currently been sent to court. 32 women were brought to administrative responsibility for engaging in prostitution last year. Additionally, 8 channels for the export of recruited persons outside the state were blocked. As a successful example of detecting, exposing, and prosecuting individuals involved in human trafficking, Alexander Naydenko cited the suppression of an international criminal group that recruited girls for sexual exploitation in London brothels. The girls were unaware of the nature of their future activities, believing they were going for well-paid jobs. Two recruiters in this case were sentenced to 7.5 and 5.5 years of imprisonment, respectively. -0-

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