Jail for Russian who ran Chelsea sex ring

Threats: Konart and Kolesnikova
12 April 2012

A Russian sex trafficker who forced girls into prostitution in brothels in Chelsea, Kensington and Earl's Court began a 10-year jail sentence today.

Sergey Konart, 41, who has links to Russian organised crime, supplied at least 13 women to a string of escort websites after they were trafficked into Britain from eastern Europe.

Konart and girlfriend Ekaterina Kolesnikova, 28, raked in at least £100,000 a year for more than three years before police smashed the trafficking ring.

He beat women and plied them with cocaine and ecstasy to make them more co-operative. The sex workers were given false identities before they were sent on long journeys to the UK.

Hanna Llewellyn-Waters, prosecuting, told Southwark crown court that many women were willing sex workers but some were told they could only leave if they paid off tens of thousands of pounds in debts.

She said: "These women were effectively enslaved by a debt bondage into working as prostitutes at the defendants' behest. Threats were made to their families. There were concerns their families could be targeted by the criminal network in Russia."

The girls were offered on websites at up to £200 an hour. The workers' takings - "at least £340,000" - were diverted by the defendants out of the country.

Konart, of Sloane Court East, Chelsea, admitted six counts including conspiracy to traffic women into the UK for sexual exploitation. Kolesnikova, of Lower Sloane Street, admitted similar charges.
Judge John Price jailed Konart for 10 years and Kolesnikova two-and-a-half years.

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