Five arrested after police rescue 24 men 'kept as slaves' on Bedfordshire caravan site

Twenty-four people believed to have been held as slaves have been rescued following a dawn raid in Bedfordshire. One hundred and fifty police officers were involved in the operation at a site close to Leighton Buzzard. It is believed the people were recruited from soup kitchens, benefits offices and other locations, with the promise of accommodation and work. When the people were brought to the site though, they had their heads shaved, mobile phones confiscated and made to work as laborers for no pay and live in squalid conditions.

Five people were arrested during the raid. Detectives are eager to talk to at least another three people in connection with holding people against their will, and slavery offenses. Some of those found on the site are believed to have been held there for as long as 15 years. If they tried to leave they were threatened and beaten. Detective Chief Inspector Sean O'Neil from the Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Major Crimes Unit told Sky News: "Generally they were held in dirty, filthy conditions, hardly any food, not replacement clothing, as compared to their gangmasters who were living in almost palatial backgrounds.

"They were generally the most vulnerable people in society, who can disappear and be held here without anyone knowing they were missing." Detectives were alerted to what was going on by 28 people who had escaped from the site. When they arrived the police expected to find around 15 people who were being held as slaves. After a search of the entire site, a total of 24 men were found, most of them British. Detectives said they were found in an awful state. They had been living in small caravans or sheds spread throughout the travelers site.

They were made to work as laborers on projects across Britain and even in Scandinavia, detectives added. In return the men were paid nothing and given little food. On their one 'day of rest' on a Sunday, they were made to get up at 6am and clean the travelers site. All 24 people are now being cared for at a reception center, where they will get held from medical and other professionals - one of whom is a specialist in torture. The four men and one woman arrested, all Irish are being questioned by the police.

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