A Polish couple living in Leeds exploited young European women, some as young as 17, by coercing them into sex work and using the profits to fund a lavish lifestyle, including luxury vehicles.

Wieslaw Michniewicz, 53, and his wife, Aleksandra Timoszek, 32, lured these women to the UK with promises of legitimate employment opportunities, only to force them into prostitution upon arrival.

The couple predominantly preyed on vulnerable women from Poland, enticing them with the prospect of jobs as childminders or in local bars and shops.

Upon reaching the UK, these women were informed they owed a debt and were compelled to work in the sex industry to repay it.

The youngest victim, just 17 at the time, was forced into prostitution at a brothel immediately after her 18th birthday.

The women endured grueling hours, working up to 20 hours a day, seven days a week, engaging in sexual activities for money.

These women did not see any of the money they had earned but instead it was handed to the couple for their supposed debts.

Michniewicz and Timoszek took the cash and spent it living a lavish lifestyle, driving expensive sports cars, Leeds Crown Court heard.

Wieslaw Michniewicz, 53, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for modern slavery and controlling prostitution offences

Aleksandra Timoszek, 32, was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison along with her husband this Friday at Leeds Crown Court

They were supported in their sex ring by Michniewicz’s cousin, Mariusz Seretny, 45, and wife, Marta Seretny, 41, the court heard, who were living at Grange Close, Hunslet. 

The couple were arrested on September 14, 2016, on suspicion of offences relating to modern slavery after a ‘complex and painstaking investigation’ by specialist detectives at West Yorkshire Police, spanning a decade.

Several women were discovered at their house on Willow Avenue, along with three luxury sports cars – a Porsche Panamera, a Porsche Carrera and an Audi R8. These were seized from the couple, along with £16,000 cash.

The couple had made around £170,000 in cash from the prostitution of their trafficking victims, handwritten ledgers found in a safe revealed. Details of the sizeable debt each victim faced were also logged here

Michniewicz, Timoszek and Mariusz Seretny were found guilty of modern slavery and controlling prostitution offences and jailed for a total of 27.5 years between them on Friday. Marta Seretny was given a community order.

There were 14 victims identified in the investigation – aged between 17 and 31.

Some women were considered unsuitable by the couple when they arrived in the UK so were sent back to Poland, while another had become suspicious and refused to travel to the country.

Masses of evidence was found in social media messages – more than 1,000 pages of it were translated from Polish to English. There were travel bookings for flights and erries as well as phones with messages, photos and videos as well as passport details of victims.

Their Leeds home was raided by police on their arrests in 2016 where several luxury cars were discovered – a Porsche Panamera, a Porsche Carrera and an Audi R8

Michniewicz’s cousin Mariusz Seretny was jailed for five years for supporting the couple in running their sex ring

Receipts of money being transferred out of the country were also found at the couple’s home and CCTV footage from the house showing the victims being driven off by Michniewicz and Timoszek on a daily basis.

Detectives maintained contact with the victims throughout the investigation and many of them returned to Poland following the arrests of Michniewicz and Timoszek.

Polish authorities were also brought in to support the victims across borders, facilitated by Europol.

The four conspirators were charged with modern slavery and controlling prostitution offences in February 2023, but both Michniewicz and Timoszek fled the country.

The pair were tracked down and extradited back to the UK and were remanded in custody until their trial, which began at Leeds Crown Court in November 2025.

The jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts against all four defendants on December 18, 2025.

Michniewicz, Timoszek and Mariusz Seretny were each convicted of conspiracy to arrange or facilitate the travel of another person with a view to exploitation; conspiracy to incite another person to become a prostitute for gain; conspiracy to control prostitution for gain; and two counts of controlling prostitution for gain in relation to two individual victims.

Marta Seretny was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to control prostitution for gain.

Police found CCTV footage from the house showing the victims being driven off by Michniewicz and Timoszek on a daily basis

The jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts against all four defendants

Police found £16,000 in cash when they arrested the couple along with several women and the luxury cars that had been bought with the proceeds of their prostitution ring

Michniewicz was sentenced to 15 years’ jail, with Timoszek, given a term of seven-and-a-half years.

Mariusz Seretny was jailed for five years, and Marta Seretny was sentenced to a 12-month community order with 80 hours of unpaid work and five rehabilitation days.

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Superintendent Helen Steele said: ‘The victims have each suffered harrowing experiences and have been left understandably traumatised by the ordeals they were put through.

‘We hope that it will help them in some way to know that those responsible have now been brought to justice.

‘Modern slavery offences are truly abhorrent, and we remain absolutely committed to doing everything we can to target those involved.

‘This is a crime that is often hidden in plain sight, and we would urge members of the public to report any suspicions they have that this type of exploitation is taking place to us immediately.’