TWO women who trafficked others on a "sexual conveyor belt" have been spared prison sentences.

Ting Li Lu, 47, and Li Wei Gao, 44, were convicted of controlling prostitution and plotting to traffic for sexual exploitation.

They were found guilty alongside Gao's ex-husband Hong Chin, a former boyfriend of Lu.

The trio exploited 18 women from China, Hong Kong and Korea for prostitution.

Victims were sent to perform sexual services in hotels all over southern England and Wales, including Bournemouth and Southampton.

Gao was sentenced to two years imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to carry out 200 hours of unpaid work.

Lu was jailed for 26 weeks, suspended for two years, and ordered to carry out 50 hours of unpaid work.

At a previous hearing Chin, who made more than £100,000 from the racket, was jailed for four years.

Sussex Police were alerted to the illicit operation in February 2015 after one of the women reported being debt bonded.

Chin, of Dunstall, Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire; Gao, of Heathside, Oxshott, Surrey; and Lu, of Portsmouth, had denied the charges.