Ex-police chief facing stint behind bars

Sir George Hamilton will be "locked up" on Friday as part of a charity challenge to highlight the plight of the estimated 40 million people held in slavery around the world.

Sir George is volunteering to serve a sentence in one of Northern Ireland's oldest preserved prison cells at Down County Museum.

He will only secure his freedom once he raises enough "bail money" through charitable donations.

The former Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) chief constable, who retired earlier this year, is raising funds for anti-slavery charity International Justice Mission (IJM).

The event is taking place one week before he is due to receive his knighthood in an investiture ceremony at Buckingham Palace.

"Modern slavery is more prevalent than most of us realise and it is vastly under-reported due to the secretive and controlling nature of the crime," said Sir George.

"I'm a supporter of IJM because I've been so impressed with their ability to build capacity and capability with the skills and expertise of the full range of professionals in many countries across the world - lawyers, social workers, law enforcement, health professionals - all involved and making a real difference in the lives of real people."

Of the 40 million trapped in slavery, IJM highlights that one in four is a child.

A group of students, lawyers and civil servants will be locked up along with the ex-police chief on Friday afternoon.

IJM has rescued more than 50,000 people from slavery and oppression worldwide.

The Jail Break group is aiming to raise £5,000 - the cost of an IJM rescue operation.

To help Sir George make his bail visit: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/GeorgeHamilton4

For more information about the International Justice Mission visit https://www.ijmuk.org/