Suspect criminal gang remanded over Omagh prostitution charges

FOUR people have been remanded in custody following an investigation into human trafficking and a brothel in Omagh.

Ondina Cordovan (21) of Bridge Street, Ionut Duta (26) of Chichester Park East, Florin Ripan (52) of Hill Street – all of Ballymena – and Gabriel Manuel Orhean (31), with an address listed as HMP Maghaberry, were connected to the charges and remanded at Ballymena Magistrates Court on Thursday.

All four were charged with controlling prostitution for financial gain between June of 2023 and June of this year as well as entering into agreements to acquire, use and conceal criminal cash during the same dates.

A police detective detailed how in January of this year investigators from the Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Unit came into contact with an alleged victim in Omagh.

The woman claimed to have been brought to the North from Romania and was then trafficked from Ballymena to Omagh for prostitution services.

The detective said the woman spoke little English and her only connections to the North were the defendants before the court. The defendants, who are believed to be part of an organised criminal gang, were alleged to have been advertising for sexual services online.

INVESTIGATION

A police investigation into the alleged gang uncovered significant financial turnovers transferred between the bank accounts of the defendants. One defendant was said to have over £170,000, which was unaccounted for.

However, it was noted that while the alleged victim had her own bank account, this was only used to quickly transfer large sums of money, with the woman having no actual income of her own.

The alleged prostitution transactions were said to have been made in cash, which the victim handed to the defendants to deposit as well as transfer between one another.

At interview, the defendants gave accounts to how they came to acquire the money, but police were not satisfied with the explanations, citing the turnovers to be far too high in comparison to their incomes.

Within the investigation, links between defendants were uncovered by bank transfers and telecommunications, with the detective adding that Cordovan in particular linked the whole operation together.

However it was alleged by Cordovan’s defence counsel that she herself was also a victim of prostitution by the organised crime gang. However the PSNI police detective said that this was not alluded to at interview.

The detective opposed bail for the four accused, informing the court that witnesses and other suspects are sought as part of the investigation.

Further objections to bail included a potential interference with the vulnerable victim, who is currently under voluntary care of a multi-agency task force, as well as interference with witnesses named in the investigation and potential suspects.

Police additionally feared that if released, the defendants could potentially interfere with money not yet seized and unaccounted for. It was further added that the defendants could possibly use the unaccounted money to flee the jurisdiction, potentially returning to Romania.

However the defence counsel argued that not only are they under the presumption of innocence at this stage, but if bail was to be granted the accused could abide by stringent bail conditions. They added that due to the complexity of device analysis and further investigations, the case may take years to complete.

The defence counsel suggested the forfeiture of passports and travel documents, alongside curfews and signing at a police station daily.

However District Judge Nigel Broderick remanded the four defendants in custody, noting police objections.

The four accused will return to Ballymena Magistrates Court on September 12 via video link.