Sri Lankan man arrested on suspicion of slavery in Iceland

A Sri Lankan man has been arrested on suspicion of keeping two women as slaves in the town of Vik in Southern Iceland.

According to Icelandic news website visir.is, a large team of officers from South Iceland Police and members of the human-trafficking squad found two women yesterday after receiving a tip-off.

The women are believed to be the victims of human trafficking and forced into slave work in Iceland by the arrested man.

The accused, who is of Sri Lankan nationality, was arrested by police yesterday. An investigation is currently under way. The two alleged female victims are also from Sri Lanka.

The man detained was a sub-contractor for the Icewear knitting factory in the town of Vík. The popular Víkurprjón shop in the town has terminated its contract with Icewear in the wake of this arrest.

It is believed that the two women in question were kept in the basement of the man’s home, which he shares with his wife.

-Agencies