The "architect and organiser" of a group that trafficked Romanian women into the UK to become sex workers has been sentenced to eight years and two months in prison.
George Filip, 45, led an organised crime group responsible for the "prostitution" of at least 16 victims, earning hundreds of thousands of pounds, Cardiff Crown Court heard.
He was assisted by his wife Ionela Filip, 35, to bring the women to work as prostitutes in locations across Wales, England and Scotland. Alexandru Moco, 27 and Leonard Banica, 41, were also involved in the conspiracy.
Judge Francis said it was a "substantial and sophisticated criminal enterprise that operated over seven years".
The court heard that between June 2015 and October 2022, at least 16 identifiable victims had been brought to the UK from Romania and France to work in the sex industry.
Matthew Cobbe, prosecuting, said the operation was of a "significant scale" with women working in "Cwmbran, Hereford, a location near Alton Towers, Stoke-on-Trent, Aberdeen and Inverness".
Francis was told the women had not been brought under duress but George, of no fixed abode, had "plainly exploited the circumstances of these victims". Although there was "no suggestion of sexual violence" there were "very many customers", Cobbe said.
Francis said that some of the women, while coming to the UK to work in the sex industry had been "pressured to commit sexual acts they had not agreed to which had caused them considerable distress".
The court heard Ionela, of Waterloo Road, Smethwick, was second-in-command in the group but not involved in the trafficking of women.
Banica, from Romania, was involved in introducing sex workers to the enterprise, while Moco, of Friary Road, Birmingham, took sex workers to appointments and provided contraception.
Cobbe said Ionela took photographs of the women in "suitably provocative poses", which were often posted on websites within 24 hours of them entering the UK.
The business was controlled using a mobile phone that was examined by police after they raided a property in Newport in January 2020, which was being used for sex work following complaints from neighbours.
The contents of the phone enabled police to understand the scale of the operation, which was described as "a very busy operation on a national level".
George, Banica and Moco – Ionela's younger brother – fled the UK while Ionela continued to run the operation in Scotland for two years. The three were rearrested when they returned to the UK.
Francis said even though she accepted the women were not under duress to work as prostitutes, "exploitation may exist even when there is an apparent degree of consent".
"It is necessary to stand back and consider the nature of this enterprise – a prostitution business, operating on a substantial commercial scale."
George was told "you are plainly the most responsible offender", while Ionela was told she was "a senior trusted manager rather than a person who exercised total control".
The judge described Banica and Moco as having lesser roles in the organisation.
George was told he would serve up to half his sentence in custody and would then be deported when released. Ionela was given a three-year suspended sentence.
Banica was sentenced to three years and nine months and was also told upon release he would be deported.
Moco was sentenced to one year and three months, and was told he was likely to be released immediately and deported.
A proceeds of crime hearing to recover finances associated with the offending is to take place in 2027.
Senior investigating officer Det Supt Robin Fuller said it was a "complex investigation that involved meticulous enquiries, evidence gathering and partnership working".
"During the investigation three of the offenders all fled the country to try and evade justice. However, we worked with our criminal justice partners internationally to bring them back to be held accountable for their crimes.
"The examination of bank accounts showed the group was making huge amounts of cash from the illegal business they'd been running since 2015.
"All initially denied being involved in any criminal activity but with the strength of evidence that we were able to present they pleaded guilty to various offences."
Louisa Robertson, of the Crown Prosecution Service, said: "This group ran a trafficking operation, exploiting women from other European countries.
"Their actions were abhorrent, treating human beings as commodities."
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