Kidnapped in London and sold into the sex slave industry in Ireland, Anna had a brutal existence until she was moved to Belfast and escaped her captors. As she publishes a book about her ordeal, Anna tells Stephanie Bell about her experiences and how she helped change the way sex trafficking is dealt with in law in Northern Ireland.
It is hard to imagine a more horrific story than that told by a young Romanian-born woman who was kidnapped in London and forced to be a sex slave right here in Northern Ireland.
Known simply as Anna — because, seven years on, she still lives in fear — today she bravely talks about her ordeal which she has shared in a new book. Called Slave, the book by Northern Ireland author and journalist Jason Johnson gives a shocking insight into the modern day sex slave trade and the ease with which the people controlling it were able to operate.
She not only escaped her vile captors but turned the tables on them, helping police bring a successful prosecution. New to Belfasttelegraph. Sign up. Over the next nine months her life became a living hell as she was kept prisoner, tortured and forced to have sex with thousands of men. Her captives starved her and deprived her of sleep, and she was constantly covered in bruises from daily beatings and rape.
She was eventually moved to Belfast where she made her escape. Today, seven years on from her ordeal, she is still very much haunted by what she endured and fear lingers, which is why she keeps her new location and identity secret. She has discovered painting as a way of coping and has surrounded herself with trustworthy friends as she tries to rebuild her life. She hopes to establish a charity for victims of the sex slave trade and has collaborated on her book to help raise awareness and also to reassure victims that they, too, can start over.
