Fifty people have been rescued from a rate-infested shop selling fake designer clothes in Manchester's Counterfeit Street area. As per Manchester Evening News, these people were locked inside the shop against their will. Some of them were trapped on the first floor, with no means to escape. They were rescued by the police on Sunday during a routine patrol exercise, when the cops saw a man suspiciously trying to close the shutters of the premises, the outlet further said in its report.
When the police opened the shutter, the customers ran out. The cops later detained a 60-year-old in connection with the incident.
The police said they found more people on the second and third floors.
Manchester Evening News said that the building had excessive amounts of rat urine and faeces, including on the shelves and goods that were being sold there.
"Officers discovered incredibly dangerous infrastructure and signs of exploitative labour, including an underground homemade air conditioning system the staff had made by drilling holes into the pipes on the ceiling," the Greater Manchester Police said in a statement.
The cops seized 20 tonnes of fake designer clothing, shoes, perfumes and make-up from the building.
Metro quoted Detective Superintendent Neil Blackwood saidas saying, "The state of this building was disgusting and so structurally unsafe. My team found members of the public trapped on the top floor with no means of escape."
"This isn't the first time we've had to rescue members of the public from these buildings, but I urge people to think twice about entering these shops," he further said.
The Manchester Police said the customers were saved under its Operation Vulcan, which has waged a relentless war on criminals operating in the region.
