A crystal meth addicted pimp who starved women unless they sex worked for him on the streets of south Manchester has been locked up.

Július Rigo, 36, offered to bring desperate families from the Czech Republic to Manchester where he claimed he could offer them legitimate work.

But when they arrived in the UK, they were subjected to horrific abuse at the hands of Rigo and his vile gang.

Women were forced into prostitution - on south Manchester's streets, in Crowcroft Park in Levenshulme, and even delivered to punters' houses for sex at as little as £30 a time.

One of Rigo's victims, known by the pseudonym Sarah, had just turned 18 when she was forced into sex work on the streets of Levenshulme and Longsight.

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The teenager, her partner and two young children had been living in poverty back home in the Czech Republic.

So when Rigo offered them work in the UK, they jumped at the chance to start a new life.

Within days the family had packed up their belongings and were being driven over to Manchester by Rigo.

But when they arrived in the city, Sarah’s boyfriend was forced to work long hours at a south Manchester car wash.

Meanwhile, Sarah was pimped out selling sex on the streets of Levenshulme and Longsight.

The teenager had no previous experience of the trade.

Rigo told her she was working to keep a roof over her children’s heads.

If Sarah failed to bring in her share of the £400 a day he demanded from his victims he would starve her.

“She felt she had no choice,” Detective Constable Chris Nield says.

The young family were forced to live in a filthy, cramped, insect-infested house in Gorton with several other slaves.

As their landlord in a strange country, who came from the same impoverished area as they did, Rigo had a psychological hold over them.

He was today jailed for 18 years after a panel of judges in the Czech Republic found him guilty of human trafficking, rape, blackmail, threats to kill and bigamy.

His wife, Darina Rigová, 32, has been locked up for nine years for human trafficking.

Their accomplice Karel Ádám, 48, has also been convicted of human trafficking and now faces six years behind bars.

Rigo’s brother, Josef Rigo, was spared jail.

Instead he has been handed an 18 month prison sentence for blackmail which has been suspended for two years.

Julius Rigo’s accomplice - a sex worker called Blanka Sárkoziová - has been convicted of controlling prostitution.

She too has been spared jail, instead handed a two year prison sentence suspended for three years.

The gang appeared at the county court in Usti nad Labem, near Prague, today (Wednesday).

All five tried to hide their faces as television cameras captured them walking into court to face the judges.

Their 13 victims have either remained in the UK or moved back to their home country.

But all have now escaped the clutches of Rigo and his gang.

Crystal meth addict Rigo was a cruel gangmaster who knew he could exploit his victims.

Desperate for money and a better life, they believed that following him to the UK would provide opportunities that simply weren’t available back home in Czechia.

All 13 came from villages in the northern Bohemian coal-mining region of Most, where unemployment rates are high.

“It’s so poor that you could see sunlight beaming through some of the buildings because there are no windows,” DC Nield says.

“You can imagine how cold that is in the winter.”

Rigo - himself a Slovakian - lives in Most and recruited all 13 of his victims from the region.

Some were homeless, some lived in hostels, some were isolated, but all were desperate for money.

As such, they quickly agreed to join Rigo in the UK.

(Image: GMP)

Little did they know that they would be exposed to brutal violence and forced into labour and sexual exploitation against their will between 2012 and 2016.

When they arrived in the UK there were housed in grotty terraces on Hobart Street and Bakewell Street, in Gorton, and Hurstbourne Avenue, in Clayton.

Police believe Július Rigo and his wife Darina Rigová made around 15.906.983 Kč - around £500,000 - through their criminal exploits.

Rigo and Rigova forced women to engage in sex work, often setting up dates with customers and driving them to strangers homes for sex on ‘outcalls’.

Victims claim that Rigo was a heavy gambler and frequent user of the potent amphetamine crystal meth - or Pervitin as it’s known in Central Europe.

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

He would drop them off on the streets of Longsight and Levenshulme, or Crowcroft Park, to work.

Rigo and his accomplice Karel Ádám both sent women under their control to work in Walsall, in the West Midlands, at the home of Blanka Sarkoziova.

A sex worker herself, Sarkoziova used her expertise in the trade to set up one of Rigo’s ‘girls’ on the advertising website Adultwork.

Once Ádám had left the UK for good he gave his ‘girl’ to Rigo to exploit.

Ádám made more than £12,000 through the scheme, while Blanka Sarkoziová made around £5,000.

In total, Rigo pimped out four women over two years to punters.

They were deprived of sleep, and he would also starve them of food if they failed to earn £400 a day.

For Sarah in particular, it was a frightening experience.

“Sarah came to the UK after being recruited by Rigo in the Czech Republic,” DC Nield says.

“She had no previous experience of sex work ever and had only just turned 18.

“She had two very young children with her at the time and travelled with her then boyfriend and father to the children.

“Rigo pressured her and threatened the stability of a roof over her children’s head. She felt she had no choice.

“After the ordeal of what happened at Rigo’s, her relationship fell apart.”

It was Sarah’s current boyfriend who saw what was happening and helped her to escape Rigo’s clutches.

“They’ve been together through thick and thin ever since,” DC Nield says.

While the women were forced into sex work, the men were made to graft long hours in car washes and restaurants in order to bring in more money for greedy ganglord Rigo.

The men worked from 9am until 8pm most days.

Each victim was paid cash in hand for their various jobs - the money went straight to Rigo.

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

Desperately poor and in fear of homelessness and violence - the victims were trapped.

Included in their number were two married couples who arrived in the UK with their children, and several desperate men and women - all Czech nationals.

The children - whose parents tried to shield them from the true horror of the situation - were exposed to the sights and sounds of horrific abuse.

One woman broke down as she told police officers how Rigo had forced her to perform oral sex on him.

Even though she had been forced to sleep with dozens of strangers for his financial benefit, police say it was the sexual assault by Rigo that affected her most deeply.

Not all of Rigo's victims were persuaded to come to the UK by him - some were already living here. But they were desperate for work and therefore easy to manipulate.

One couple had already come to the UK of their own accord in the hope of finding work.

(Image: GMP)

They knew Rigo from home and got in touch upon hearing that he was in the UK. They hoped he could help them find work, Instead they unwittingly became trapped in his scheme.

But Rigo didn’t just force people into labour as a way of making money.

He also wed a Nigerian woman in a sham marriage back in 2014. Police don’t know how much money he earned this way.

The net began to close in on Rigo and his gang back in 2018, when two of his victims fled to Yorkshire.

Furious Rigo followed them across county lines and brought them back to Manchester.

But they managed to escape again and Rigo travelled back to Yorkshire where he started a row outside a home in the county.

Police were called to the property and the woman was identified by officers as a potential victim of modern slavery.

Police initially thought her boyfriend was the trafficker, but detectives soon started to put the pieces together and identified Rigo as the kingpin.

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

Around the same time, during a separate incident, a Czech woman living in Gloucester called the police and claimed Adam and Rigo had forced her to sex work.

Meanwhile, a chef working at a restaurant in Trafford called the police fearing that a man working as a kitchen porter was a victim of modern slavery.

The chef told the authorities that the man, aged in his fifties, would often scavenge for food and cigarettes from his fellow workers and had been spotted sleeping rough outside the restaurant.

Restaurant staff had no idea that his wages were being paid directly into Rigova’s bank account.

When interviewed by police, the kitchen porter told officers that he had been working for Rigo as he feared being made homeless.

Described by victims as Rigo's 'horse', the kitchen porter suffered the brunt of Rigo’s frustrations and was regularly beaten by his cruel ‘boss’.

The victim had been working at a car wash, along with several others under Rigo’s control.

But when he suffered a serious back injury he could no longer work the gruelling hours.

(Image: PA)

Instead he was sent to the Trafford restaurant to work as a kitchen porter - a move that would lead to Rigo's eventual downfall.

DC Nield says the chef’s actions in identifying this victim ultimately led to Rigo being unmasked.

“He spotted the signs that one of the kitchen staff was being exploited,” the detective says.

“He came forward to the police which ultimately led to the rescue and identification of this web.

“He really made a difference in making this case happen in the first place, as he provided a real insight into what was happening to one of the victims.

“That victim is now in the Czech Republic receiving support and recovery from anti-trafficking charities.”

By Christmas 2017, Rigo and Rigova had fled the UK and headed back to the Czech Republic.

(Image: Manchester Evening News)

They married just weeks before their arrests for human trafficking.

The wedding ceremony officially made Rigo a bigamist and would lead to his eventual conviction for that crime.

The 13 people forced into labour by Rigo are now safe and have been getting support.

Some went back to Czech Republic, others have stayed here in the UK where they are now living a life free from cruel Rigo.

Without their bravery in giving evidence, police say Rigo might never have been caught.

“The case was pretty much victim led,” DC Nield says.

“Without these victims coming forward and having their say, we would have had a much weaker case.”

DC Nield has praised the bravery of the victims in this 'horrific' case.

He said: "Rigo is a disgusting individual who made their lives miserable.

"More miserable than many of us can imagine.

"I'm very very proud of the way the victims came forward to tell their stories.

"I have never seen a case where people who are so traumatised have been so committed to assisting the police.

"They didn't think twice about their own safety, they just did it, even though they were putting themselves at significant risk.

"I'm very proud of them. They deserve the result they have been given but it's all down to their bravery."

DC Nield said the verdict of court was the result of "a long and complex investigation" by Greater Manchester Police officers, the Czech National Police, Europol, Eurojust and the Modern Slavery team in GMP, as well as partners and charities who have supported the victims.

He addes: “I hope this sends a clear message that we will not stand for modern slavery in Greater Manchester and our officers are absolutely committed to making sure that people who subject others to this horrific treatment are brought to justice.”

Modern slavery comes in many guises. #WouldYou spot the signs of forced labour? Visit www.gmp.police.uk/wouldyou

• Would you recognise the signs of modern slavery?

• Would you live in the squalid conditions these people are expected to live in?

• Would you know how to report modern slavery?

Modern slavery involves the movement or recruitment of individuals using threats, deception or other means for the purpose of exploitation.

It is not an issue confined to history or an issue that only exists in certain countries. It is a global problem and it is happening right now.

There is no typical victim of slavery – they can be men, women and children of all ages but it is normally more prevalent amongst the most vulnerable, minority or socially excluded groups.

Victims found in the UK come from many different countries, including Poland, Hungary, Romania, Vietnam and the UK itself.

Modern Slavery is organised crime with severe consequences. All too often members of the public turn a blind eye, either through fear or ignorance.