Virgins for sale in Colombia in 'world's biggest brothel'

Medellin Colombia a city made famous by one man the drug baron Pablo Escobar for over a decade he ruled these streets through extreme violence in the 90s shootings, car bombings and random murders made it by far the most dangerous city in the world Escobar is long dead but the years of choas have left the darkness in Medillin's soul I have been following Colombia's drug wars for 15 years that time most of the violence has moved to Mexico but this city is still suffering from its narco legacy For years the easy cash of the drug trade has fuelled a huge sex industry even the taxi drivers are in on i t They say here if you put a roof on Medellin it would the largest brothel in the world this is Medellin's red-light district Daniella has been walking these streets for five years since she was 11 Prostitution is legal here but the age of consent is 18 But some visitors are unsatisfied with just young girls Pablo Escobar famously likes sleeping with virgins now for a premium price sex tourists can do the same as the drug trade fell away the gangs are that controlled these barrios look for a fresh source of income this shocking new trade means mothers all across Medellin live in fear Her daughter is just 11 years old But her mother says the gangs already have plans for her This is not the image of Medellin the authorities want to promote they have spent millions cleaning up the city attracting visitors and trying to show it has moved on from the past The mayor told me that they had reports of virgins being sold but had not investigated - so local people have taken matters into their own hands this graffiti says it is not a rumor there are buying and selling girls for sexual exploitation 'they' means the gangs The gangs control everything in the barrios including the trade in virgins For weeks I've been trying to persuade them to talk they finally agreed but only if we don't reveal their identities these men are part of the city's main gang they inherited Pablo Escobar's Empire - they control these streets - their business is drugs extortion and the sex trade tonight they're keen to show me how easy it is for them to find new virgins Medellin is less violent than it used to be but still the life expectancy of these gang members is not high they feel they have nothing to lose they spoke to young girls and start talking to them - they invite them to a party a couple of minutes later the girls give them their phone numbers - it was incredible to see how the gang members stopped to 14 year old girls and groomed them in ten minutes they got their phone numbers and possibly in a couple of days they will call they will take them out shopping buy them a mobile phone in a week or two those two girls miss all those virgins half an hour later I meet up with the gang members In these men's violent and cynical world the two young girls were nothing more than a way to make money - I wanted to know what kind of man would come to Colombia to have sex with girls this young Paul Brailsford is the only Britain convicted of having sex with children here in Colombia in 2011 he was arrested in a hotel room with child pornography and accused of sleeping with two girls aged 12 and 14 - he didn't have a gang to groom the virgins for him he did it himself - he's now spending 20 years in prison I managed to get him to agree to an interview from inside the jail we know the sentence and you know and the charges the were put against against you what do you have to say about that well basically I'm still fighting to get out I'm innocent yes you're innocent you didn't abuse oh no no no unfortunately here there are many underage hookers yes okay and I got caught in a sting I thought they were older yeah yeah a problem there were 12 years 12 years old one and the other one 14 and a half yeah okay both tall yeah yes tall as you yeah very well-endowed yeah yes so you thought were they were over 18 yes I thought old enough no problem what he didn't know is that the day before I had gone to see one of the girls he was convicted of abusing the legal age of consent in Colombia is 18 Naomi is now 16 years old - when Paul Brailsford slept with her she was just 12 she told me she was not a prostitute that he groomed her after seeing her on the beach and then abused her over several months I mean, she's 16 now and for me she doesn't look 18 - still so if I think back and three and a half years ago when she was 12 would she have looked... this is your opinion yeah okay no problem yeah so you didn't think she was 12 no your opinion my opinion yeah So you didn't so you didn't think she was 12 your opinion my opinion and that was it yes and do you have anything to tell them do I have anything to tell them yeah if you had them in front of you Gloria and her two daughters what will tell them - i don't know - close it down close it down now close it Paul Brailsford is one of just three foreigners in jail in Colombia for these crimes Upi don't have anything to say to 12 year old girl that you abused and the 14 year old girl that you abused? with the authorities failing to confront this growing trade it is left to mothers like mothers to fight for their daughter's futures Medellin might be a safer place for tourists nowadays but not for young girls growing up in the barrios among the gangs who are exploiting their innocence for profit Guillermo Galdos Channel 4 News in Medellin.

Channel: Channel 4 News

Views: 19,719,922

Rating: 4.5095735 out of 5

Keywords: Channel 4 News, 4 News, Channel 4, news, latest news, breaking news, Colombia, gangs, Medellin, prostitution, virgins, virgin, Pablo Escobar, most dangerous city, drugs, drug lord, drug war, cocaine, drug trafficking, brothel, sex, prostitute, underage sex, child prostitute, Virgins for sale, Paul Brailsford, grooming, abuse, child abuse, Medellín Cartel, La Oficina, The Office, Envigado, Guillermo Galdos, Anibal Gaviria, Mayor Anibal Gaviria, police, sex ring, child sex ring

Id: aAXOC3P0Knw

Length: 11min 53sec (713 seconds)

Published: Thu Sep 18 2014