THE number of modern slavery crimes was been revealed by a Freedom of Information (FOI) request.

In 2025, the number of crimes recorded as holding another person in slavery or servitude by Devon & Cornwall Police was 44, the FOI request shows.

The number of crimes in 2024 was 28.

Modern slavery exists in many forms in the UK, including trafficking into criminal activities like cannabis farming, sexual exploitation, domestic slavery or forced labour.

It is impossible to know the true extent of modern slavery in the UK, but the Home Office released data to demonstrate the numbers of people referred to authorities.

In 2024, there were: 19,125 potential victims of modern slavery, 31 per cent of whom were children – meaning there were 5,999 potential child victims.

Twenty three per cent of people referred were British nationals.

In 2024, labour exploitation was the most common form of slavery in the UK, followed by criminal exploitation.

For more information, and to report modern slavery, visit Devon & Cornwall Police’s website.