Brothel owner netted £56,000 (From Bournemouth Echo)

Brothel owner netted £56,000

7:00pm Thursday 25th September 2008 in

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A mother-of-three who ran a brothel from a terraced house in Bournemouth made £55,890 from immoral earnings, a court heard.

Yasmin Desilva, 34, who received a nine-month suspended prison sentence for running a house of ill repute in Norwich Avenue, was ordered to pay £15,000 at a confiscation hearing.

Judge John Harrow warned Desilva that if she did not pay up within four months she would face being jailed for 12 months.

Earlier Bournemouth Crown Court heard how Desilva had been arrested after police stumbled across the brothel while executing a drugs warrant.

Officers discovered huge quantities of condoms, business cards offering escort and massage services, sex toys and accounts books.

As well as Desilva, there was "a maid" responsible for meeting and greeting clients, answ-ering the phone and cleaning, two English women and a Lithuanian girl. No drugs were found during the raid.

The court was told that Sri-Lanka-born Desilva was paying £250 rent and spending around £400 on advertising each week. She was estimated to have made a profit of around £500 a day.

Desilva, of Windham Road, Springbourne, pleaded guilty to managing a brothel between July 4, 2004 and June 9, 2007.

In her defence the court heard that her takings were nearer £1,000 a week and that if she was jailed her family would be split up.

Judge Harrow told her: "You ran an illegal business as you must have known from the outset. It was clearly profitable but it has to be said there is no suggestion that you coerced or compelled any of these women to participate.

"These working girls were there of their own free will, sharing the profits with you."

Desilva was ordered to complete 100 hours unpaid community work.