Five Hungarians suspected of serious pimping offenses in Helsinki

Helsinki police suspect five individuals from Hungary of serious pimping offenses. According to the police, the pimping organization facilitated the trafficking of Hungarian sex workers to Finland over several years. This illegal activity was concentrated in major cities across Finland, particularly in the capital region.

Investigations indicate that approximately thirty sex workers were involved with the organization in Finland between 2018 and 2024, with police uncovering up to 600 flights between Hungary and Finland connected to the operation. The suspects, who are in custody, are reportedly part of the same family. The primary suspect is a woman in her thirties, currently imprisoned in Finland, while the other suspects remain under investigation.

The police estimate the operation’s revenue at around €1.2 million, with illicit profits accounting for approximately €600,000. The organizers took fifty percent of the income from the sex workers, who typically stayed in Finland for two to three weeks, sometimes longer. They exchanged apartments and cities every three to four days, according to investigation leader Hannu Kortelainen.

The operation was managed from temporary rented accommodations, and the sex workers were provided with Finnish prepaid phone numbers. The Helsinki police collaborated with Hungarian authorities during the investigation, which has now been passed to the national human trafficking crimes investigation team for prosecution.

This case is part of a broader phenomenon, as the investigation team has uncovered two significant pimping organizations this year involving both suspects and victims from Hungary. Police report that more than one hundred women have been trafficked in Finland and Sweden. Concurrently, the number of Hungarian sex workers in Denmark has reportedly doubled, while their numbers arriving in Finland have dramatically decreased. Previous criminal suspicions date back to 2016–2023, revealing that the same individuals have been operating trafficking rings in Norway, Denmark, and Iceland.