Dozens of British teenage boys have been forced to work as "slave labourers" in Sweden after they were lured to the country by gangs promising jobs and girls.
The Foreign Office last night confirmed it had been involved in the rescue of 15 teenage boys this year. They had been kept in prison-like conditions and threatened with beatings to stop them leaving, a spokesman said.
British and Swedish police are targeting a network of 10 criminal families thought to be behind the racket.
Officers in Sweden, who are hoping to bring human trafficking charges, said the boys, aged 17 to 19, had their passports taken from them and were working as "slaves" from dawn to dusk on construction sites.
They often found themselves living in caravans without heat or water and were paid so little they had to steal from supermarkets.
Police were alerted when locals complained of shoddy workmanship. Investigations revealed a network systematically "abducting" youngsters from the UK into Sweden via Stavanger in Norway on the ferry from Newcastle. The boys are believed to be targeted by criminal family members in pubs or on the streets.
The Foreign Office has warned Britons in Sweden to contact the embassy before taking up any offer of work.
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