Sunday 13 April 2014

An Angel over Rimini by Patrick Brigham

I know that there are people trafficking problems in the US, with many illegal immigrants coming up from the south, but we also have a huge problem in Europe.

To discuss illegal immigration in its broadest economic context is one thing, but to do so - without mentioning the scum who profit from and organize these illegal activities - is to just scratch the surface of the whole horrifying subject. This is because ignorance, foxy politicians and the Yellow Press have made quite reasonable people think, that it is simply a matter of jobs!

Due to various wars and altercations in the Middle East - Iraq, Syria Egypt, North Africa and Afghanistan - many of the dispossessed, oppressed or simply economic migrants have chosen to make their way to Northern Europe, seeking new jobs, security, religious freedom, peace and if at all possible, prosperity. So they pay the traffickers large sums of money,and believe their promises. The result, unfortunately, is  usually disappointing and the reality often fatal.

But victims of abduction also exist within our own European shores and many children are abducted and transported throughout Europe itself. The story of Madi McCann is a good example of how young children can disappear without trace from European soil. Although in her case the trail is becoming a little cold - due to the procrastination of the Portuguese Authorities - it is clear that the Metropolitan Police in London, believe that she could well still be alive.

But I know that abduction and people trafficking is big business. Living close to the Greek border next to European Turkey, I can offer first hand testimony about the misfortune waiting for many  guileless travelers who, due to certain basic English language skills, often wrongly believe that they are on their way to the UK and a bright future.

 
But that is only part of the story and to our everlasting shame, it goes much further into the realms of prostitution, organ harvesting, slave labor, child pornography and forced adoption, with the latter being a very lucrative criminal activity. In my new sequel novel An Angel over Rimini, I tell the reader about the latter category of criminal abduction.

Taking you from Italy to the traditional smuggling points on the Evros Delta in Greece, our little English girl, Penelope Scratchford, suffers further forced transportation not only to Greece, but to Bulgaria and finally into Northern Europe. It is then that we discover how she was first kidnapped in Italy, and her ultimate fate.

Detective Chief Inspector Michael Lambert is on the case, but this time for Europol, which is Europe's equivalent of the FBI. But the story is not all black and in fact his journey of discovery is full of life and romance; and also punctuated with hope, as he fathoms out the case, tracks down the culprits and finally discovers the truth about the abduction of Penelope Scratchford!

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