Raid closes household brothel in Glenfield

A raid on a suburban brothel yesterday uncovered links to eight others in the same neighbourhood and raised questions about possible connections to organised crime.

The brothel bust was the first under new bylaws passed by North Shore City in May after the Prostitution Reform Act 2003 gave councils the right to police prostitution.

Eight young Asian women and a Chinese woman in her 30s were at the address and were thought to have worked between "eight or nine establishments" in Glenfield, said the city council's environmental protection manager, Warwick Robertson.

"We don't know if they are linked to organised crime, but we are working with police, Immigration and IRD"

Four of the women would be questioned by Immigration Service staff, and police were also continuing to investigate a "range of illegalities", Mr Robertson said.

Thousands of dollars in cash was found at the house, an ordinary 1960s bungalow where neighbours say dozens of vehicles pulled up at all hours of the day and night.

"They must have been making a mint," said Lyn Goldworthy.

Neighbours signed a petition last year to get the place shut down, she said.

They were "thrilled" something had finally been done.

"It was amazing the different types that would go there, some driving Mercedes, some plumbers' vans, and different age groups."

Mr Robertson said a "conservative" estimate put the turnover of the brothel at more than $500,000 a year.

As the Herald arrived at the house, a middle-aged man pulled up in a white car and calmly walked past council and investigations staff to enter.

Asked where he was going, he replied that he had a "friend" at the house called "Anna".

He did not leave until Mr Robertson explained that the establishment had been shut.

The council hired a private investigations company to gather evidence before the raid. A staff member visited twice.

"The operative made an excuse at the appropriate time," said Mr Robertson.

Once word of yesterday's raid got round, the other Glenfield brothels would probably shut their doors, he said.

The city's bylaws say a brothel cannot be less than 250m from residential zones or within 125m of another brothel, "education facilities, places of worship and major public transport interchanges".

Mr Robertson said no decision had been made on whether the older woman would face charges of operating an illegal brothel, punishable by a fine of up to $20,000.