Members of a Roma gypsy gang trafficked vulnerable young women from to the UK to be sold into sham marriages, a court heard.
The operation was uncovered after one of the women was brutally raped by Muhammad Badar Ul Islam, 32, of Brookscroft Road, Walthamstow, to whom she had just been "sold" for £4,500 in March 2013.
Badur Ul Islam is currently serving a eight years and three months in prison after being found guilty of rape and trafficking within the UK and conspiracy to breach UK immigration laws in December 2013.
The Whipps Cross security guard took the victim back to his Walthamstow home for six days where he raped her, before she was taken to hospital due to heavy bleeding as a result.
While in hospital, the woman told authorities that she had been the victim of rape and people trafficking, sparking the major police investigation which uncovered three more alleged victims.
The defendants Roman Ziga, 26, his brother Jozef Ziga, 28, and 43-year-old Igor Boros, all from Slovakia appeared in court to deny charges of plotting to traffic women and breaching UK immigration laws.
The trial continues.
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