Overview
- Nine properties were searched across North Rhine-Westphalia, Hesse and Baden‑Württemberg, where three arrest warrants were executed during coordinated operations.
- Judges in Aachen and Herford ordered pre‑trial detention for the detainees after they were presented to magistrates.
- Authorities allege the accused, including two Germans and two Chinese nationals aged 29 to 47, enabled prostitution by undocumented Chinese women by providing premises and placing ads on erotic platforms, with one suspect identified as a landlord.
- Investigators seized three vehicles along with mobile phones, computers and other storage media, and they referred five Chinese women without valid residence permits to immigration officials after one paid a fine to clear an enforcement warrant.
- In a separate action in Wolfsburg and Hamburg, federal police executed another warrant in a document‑fraud and people‑smuggling probe involving 'Garantieschleusung', and the lead suspect was jailed as agencies cite differing investigation start dates.