A 65-year-old woman was arrested and charged with operating a commercial brothel in a location other than a prescribed location and failing to register a commercial brothel following a raid on a Kingston apartment yesterday (November 29).

She has been granted bail and will appear in the ACT Magistrates Court at a later date.

Police and Australian Border Force officers executed a search warrant at an apartment complex yesterday morning. Two other women are subject to ABF enquiries regarding their immigration status.

Detective Superintendent Scott Moller said the operation was the result of information received from the public.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank the community for information about this illegal brothel and emphasise that information such as this assists police greatly, allowing us to shape investigations and target criminal activity in our community,” he said.

Acting Superintendent Kari Ellis, from ABF ACT Operational Command, said this is the second such activity in the last two months .

“Cracking down on businesses employing foreign workers is an operational priority for the ABF, including through compliance activity and its work under Taskforce Cadena.

“As part of our ongoing work to protect the integrity of the visa system, we actively target those individuals in our community who prey on foreign workers and who attempt to profit by underpaying and generally mistreating them. The welfare of these victims is our primary concern when conducting these operations.”

Anyone with information that could assist police should call 1800 333000, or via the Crime Stoppers ACT website. Information can be provided anonymously.