VICE TRADE IN PARIS

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1062, 28 August 1930, Page 12

VICE TRADE IN PARIS

NEW ZEALAND WOMAN LEADS GANG AMAZING DISCLOSURES Following on the arrest of a woman and four men in Paris, amazing disclosures are made regarding the ramifications of the traffic in young girls for the vice markets of the world (says the Paris correspondent of the Sydney “Sun”). It. is alleged that the “Trust” with which this woman was associated was responsible for supplying the Australian and New Zealand market. The woman arrested is aged 33, and, though she claims to be a native of Lancashire, the police say that she came to France from Auckland. New Zealand, eight years ago, and was then in possession of a passport issued in Sydney a year before. She then described herself as Australian by birth and marriage, and it is alleged that it. was only lately, when she found it useful for carrying on her work of recruiting from the ranks of Lancashire dancing girls on the Continent. that she discovered she was of Lancashire origin.

Faked Passports The books of the accused woman, j seized at her lavishly-furnished chateau, show that she was recruiting agent for dens of infamy in all parts of the world, and she has kept rei cords of transactions with c lients in different parts of the Australian conj tinent. , j The woman had established a iacI tory for the making of false passports and other papers to make it j possible for her to cany on the trade i of exporting young girls to Australia, New Zealand, South America, Can- | ada and South Africa. She arranged ; for the girls to be accompanied to ports of embarkation by male and i female agents who had papers ] establishing kinship with the victims. Agents posing as relatives or even as religious workers interested in the welfare of young girls, were ready to receive the victims on arrival. Aristocrats at £.40 Among the papers seized is the cur- ' rent price list for this vile traffic, 1 from which it. seems that the highest j market price is paid for English girls. I The rates quoted are from £l2O to £l5O for English girls, with the ! French coining next, at rates ranging , from £IOO to £llO. j Russians are among the cheapest, j the best and most attractive types ! from this country seldom fetching more than £4O. The woman makes .the terrible disclosure that since the ! effects of the revolution began to be j felt among the exiled Russian arisi t.ocrats, there is a glut on the market jof these women ready to sell themselves. Arrest of 400 Agents i The police allege that this woman also provided mistresses for foreignj era visiting Paris and charged fees I running to £I,OOO. She received a | fee of £5,000 for providing an Eng- ! lish victim for a Royal personage. It is also alleged that, her agents made a point of looking up her clients on their return home and blackmailing

them over incidents associated with their European trip. Following on the arrests in Paris, information was cabled to the police in Argentine that resulted in a number of raids and the arrest of more than 400 agents of the gang. It. is stated by the police that this woman was living at the rate of £5,000 a year in her chateau, and j that she has two luxurious cars and i large investments, besides a great deal jof costly jewellery. When she first j landed in France she was seeking emI ploy men t as a stenographer.