Woman remanded on human-trafficking charge after extradition from Sweden

As 30-year-old Romanian woman Ancuta Schwarz appeared before magistrates in the city over her suspected involvement in the vice racket, a detective revealed that a male co-accused will be brought to Northern Ireland next week.

Schwarz, 30, with an address at Karowan Strasa in Berlin, has been charged with human trafficking and controlling prostitution following a three-year police investigation.

She also faces a further count of removing criminal property from Northern Ireland.

It is alleged that she took out £4,178 in money transfers to another woman in Romania.

The charges against her cover a period between February 2011 and April 2013.

Schwarz was extradited following the execution of a European Arrest Warrant.

Belfast Magistrates’ Court heard police are mounting a joint case against her and the man, also understood to be Romanian.

A detective involved in the probe confirmed: “He’s being extradited from Sweden next Tuesday.”

Counsel for Schwarz, Michael Boyd, raised concerns about possible double jeopardy in the case against his client.

“This lady has served three full years in prison in Sweden for matters that are identical,” Mr Boyd told the court.

Explaining how those proceedings involved incidents in Northern Ireland, the defence barrister added: “We want to receive the papers and make comparisons between the facts in this case and the facts in Sweden.”

Schwarz, who was dressed in a knee-length grey coat with leopard print collar and shoulders, sat impassively in the dock flanked by male and female prison guards for the duration of the brief hearing.

She occasionally ruffled her hands through long dark hair which had been pulled back into a loose ponytail, and glanced around the courtroom.

No application for bail was made due to the lack of an available address within the jurisdiction.

Instead, Schwarz was remanded in custody to appear again by video-link on February 18.