Bradford murder case 'hugely distressing for city residents as well as families'

More on the Bradford killings, with video

Supt Angela Williams, West Yorkshire Police's deputy commander for Bradford South, said the case was "hugely distressing" for the women's relatives but also "very upsetting for the people of Bradford as a whole".

She added that the case had come as a "huge shock" to officers working on the police force's dedicated vice team.

"They are a group of police officers who have a passionate commitment to not just arresting women involved in prostitution, which in itself is a short-term fix and solves very little long term, but in getting them out of what is often a vicious circle of sex work in order to feed a habit of drink and drugs."

Supt Williams added that the city benefited from "one of the most comprehensive and well co-ordinated approaches" to prostitution as police worked with council officers, probation officials, health workers and an array of support agencies.

Experts known collectively as the Bradford Prostitution Tactical Group meet monthly to develop action plans for vulnerable women.

Bradford Council's executive member for community safety, Imran Hussain, said: "Everybody has their own hopes and dreams for their lives and their families' lives, regardless of what they have to do for a living.

"These women have not set out in life to be prostitutes. Many of them are very vulnerable and it is only by working together with other agencies that we can give them the support that we hope will help them turn their lives around."