Estonian trafficking ring broken in Finland

Police in Finland have said that they believe as many as 1000 people were involved as clients using 15 women trafficked from Estonia by an organised trafficking gang. The police have made 11 arrests, and the suspects will be charged with offences relating to human trafficking. It is alleged that the gang, which was run from Estonia, made around 80,000 Euros profit. There is a well established human trafficking route between Estonia and Finland, which are only separated by a ferry ride across the Gulf of Finland. The arrests come as part of the National Action Plan against human trafficking which was unveiled in Finland in March 2005. Finland continues to be a destination and transit country for women trafficked into sexual exploitation from former soviet countries, mainly Russia, and increasingly from Asia as air routes are developed.