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A gang of ruthless human traffickers jailed last week face the most severe court sanctions in Scotland when they are eventually released.
The three Chinese nationals, who ran a network of brothels in Glasgow and Edinburgh, were handed lengthy terms of imprisonment after their operations were dismantled by a Police Scotland and Home Office investigation.
However, it can be revealed that the gang, who generated ‘significant financial proceeds’, now face Serious Crime Prevention Orders (SCPOs) which will see their activities, even down to the amount of cash they carry, monitored for rest of their lives.
We told this month how Qin Huang, 31, a mother-of-three who directed operations from her flat in a quiet Glasgow suburb, and co-accused Xiao Min, 38, of Carshalton, Surrey, trafficked women to work in brothels in Scotland. They included one located 50 yards from unsuspecting tourists on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. A third member of the group, Guolei Huang, 35, was convicted of ‘brothel-keeping.’
The gang reacted with shock and anger as they were sentenced at the High Court in Glasgow on Tuesday to a total of more than 20 years in prison.
‘Brothel madam’ Qin Huang, who trafficked women and arranged for adverts for their services, sobbed uncontrollably when told she would serve eight years, while a co-accused yelled furiously as he was led away to be transported to prison.
DCI Iain Nelson, who helped lead an operation targeting people traffickers who ran brothels in Scotland
Gang members Qin Huang and Xiao Min
We can reveal that a further court hearing has been ordered for next month, at which the trio are in line to be served with SCPOs, Scotland’s most punitive measures aimed at curbing the activities of serious criminals.
The measures, in place since 2016, are designed to inhibit offenders and ensure their ‘lifetime management’ across their business and personal lives, from the cash they carry, to mobile phone use and travel activities.
A legal source said: ‘These orders are reserved for serious cases, and are aimed at making it as difficult as possible for them to return to criminal activities when they are released from prison.
‘They give the authorities the scope to comprehensively monitor offenders, including any assets, income, expenditure, and can even limit the money in their pockets.
‘They place restrictions on criminals until the day they die.’
We told how the three were convicted in a policing first – without a single victim having to appear in court – such was the stength of the evidence, such as from intelligence and digitial sources, which police gathered.
Speaking to this newspaper, police welcomed the convictions and said it sent a clear message such offences would not be tolerated.
Police Scotland Detective Chief Inspector Iain Nelson, who helped lead the investigation, said: ‘This case actually started in 2020 as a spin-off from another anti-trafficking operation and intelligence gained via that.
‘Pieces of information began to connect and we were able to build links between these. We found connections to other areas of trafficking and organised crime and initiated inquiries from there.
‘Now, several years down the line, when you have convictions for those involved, it is a big win for us.
‘It sends a message to those responsible that it will not be tolerated and encouragement to victims that we can help.’
At the High Court last week, Xiao Min was sentenced to 8 years and 6 months, after admitting human trafficking alongside Qin Huang, while Guolei Huang was jailed for 4 years and 3 months for ‘brothel keeping’.
Judge Lady Poole said: ‘The investigation uncovered a sophisticated criminal network involved in prostitution.
‘East Asian females were harboured and trafficked to work as prostitutes. The network included the use of six different rented addresses in Glasgow, and one in Edinburgh, for the provision of sexual services.
‘Brothel keeping and trafficking women for prostitution involves the deliberate degrading of fellow human beings.
‘When such offences come to light, it is the practice of the courts to impose substantial sentences in order to punish the offender in a manner which adequately reflects the gravity of these crimes, to deter others from regarding the exploitation of others as a potential money-making opportunity, and to protect the vulnerable from being exploited in this way.’
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