THE Met Police have secured £600,000 to fund a specialist unit to tackle the expected surge in sex trafficking in Olympic boroughs in the run up to the 2012 Games.

Police believe there will be a surge in the numbers of young women trafficked into the boroughs, including Waltham Forest, as traffickers seek to make money out of the hundreds of thousands of visitors to the site.

The new unit will investigate suspected trafficking and work to rescue victims.

In Athens in 2004, the number of victims doubled and undercover officers in the five 2012 boroughs have already noticed an increase.

Officers are also working in countries from which women are trafficked, raising awareness of the dangers to women who are offered trips to the UK by “boyfriends” or employers.