"It sounds like there's been some right goings on, you really don't know what's happening on your doorstep"
21.02.2024 - 21:45
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Just minutes away from the exclusive market town of Altrincham, a historic Grade II listed pub has had its doors shut by police.
The Railway, on Manchester Road, in Broadheath, has been issued with a closure order after police uncovered 'significant evidence' it was being used to offer 'sexual services'.
New evidence that has come to light led Greater Manchester Police to carry out a raid on the premises, where they say a vulnerable woman was trafficked into the borough to work at the site. There is also 'significant evidence', the force says, that the pub has been used to 'offer sexual services for reward'.
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On Wednesday afternoon (February 21), all of the lights were off, the door was locked, and those passing by were met with a bold sign - a reminder of the court's closure order in place - 'to prevent nuisance and disorder'.
Those living locally said the pub, which was recently revamped as an Irish bar, was 'always empty', with one woman claiming the 'lights were on and curtains were closed' in the early hours of the morning on the upper floor.
"I knew something was off... it's always empty and the curtains are closed", said Joan, a pensioner, who lives in an apartment just off Manchester Road.
Speaking to the M.E.N, she added: "They were opening at weird times. I'm nosey, and sometimes I'd come home after 3am and the doors were shut but the lights were on and the curtains were closed. I never thought much of it, but it seemed off."
Standing in their doorway, another Churchill Road resident said: "It's always dead; it didn't look right, you know, like a functioning pub. We never see anyone going in or out.
"My son told me about it today after reading