Sleazy landlord offers woman 650-a-month room in return for 'sex once a week'

A SLEAZY landlord has been caught on camera offering a “sex for rent” deal to a young woman.

The man advertised a £650-a-month home in Cardiff with "reduced deposit/rent arrangement" for "alternative payments" from his would-be tenant.

He was exposed during a face-to-face meeting with undercover investigator Siân Thomas - and was caught on camera offering weekly sex instead of rent.

Hidden camera footage show the pair discussing the "sex-for-rent" agreement.

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The landlord can be heard saying: "I don't want to suggest anything that makes you run a mile but I want to help you out.

"I don't know if you have heard of a sort of a friends with benefits sort of arrangement."

When asked how many times he would want sex in return for no rent, he answers: "Once a week."

He says: "If say for example we were going to go down the route of once a week, if we were going to do that then I wouldn't be interested in any rent from you at all."

The man advertised the room on Craigslist, which can legally host the adverts.

But a crime of incitement to prostitution is committed when the arrangement is made.

The meeting was set up as part of an investigation into discounted accommodation for sexual favours - dubbed "sex for rent."

It has been carried out by ITV Wales programme Ein Byd - meaning "Our World" - for S4C, Channel Four in Wales.

After the meeting the landlord asked the programme not to broadcast the footage and "expose him for a monster."

In an email he wrote: "I should have trusted my gut and not done this. I'm such a fool, but this will ruin everything I have left everywhere.

"I have absolutely no intention of ever even considering doing this again, tonight has really given me a reality check and I'm ashamed of myself.

"Please don't expose me for a monster."

Adverts from other male landlords on Craigslist included a free room in Cardiff "for a female with whom I can come to an arrangement".

Another advert offered a two-bed bungalow in Newport with "rent greatly reduced in return for favours".

The law states a crime is committed when a person causes or incites someone to become a prostitute under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

But there are no known prosecutions over "sex for rent" in the UK because it is such a new phenomenon.

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Welsh Labour politician Dawn Bowden AM said: "You've got to get to the point where we identify these people and they are prosecuted.

"And once you've got a few prosecutions, that will give people the confidence to come forward and report it.

"But it is extremely difficult for people that are in absolutely desperate circumstances - they need somewhere to live, they need a roof over their head - and for some people, this is the only way they can get it."

* Viewers can watch the full investigation tonight on S4C at 9.30pm. English subtitles available.

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