To the untrained eye, little would seem to link a high-end brothel with the medieval surroundings of Crosby Hall, a sumptuous 30-room mansion once owned by Henry VIII that sits on the banks of the Thames.
Even the Tudor monarch may have met his match with the goings on in Chelsea Cloisters, where the proliferation of prostitutes earned it the egregious title ‘the ten floors of whores’.
But today, as a Hungarian former escort and her ex-special constable husband were convicted of prostitution in the exclusive apartment block in West London, perhaps the most incongruous fact of this tawdry saga is that the two properties are owned by the same man.
Christopher Moran (with Prince Harry in Belfast in 2017) has unwittingly made millions in rent from a high-end Chelsea brothel
Step forward one Christopher Moran, Conservative donor and friend of the royals who, when not enjoying the riverside views from the formal gardens of his 15th-century home, could often be found at the Chelsea office of his property company, his chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce parked outside.
Although there is no suggestion Mr Moran, worth £400 million, was involved in any of the prostitution, he has made millions in rent from the block.
To the enterprising businessman, it was another money-spinning jewel in an already sparkling area of the capital.
To the Conservative Party, however, which received more than £290,000 in donations from Mr Moran — including around £87,000 under the leadership of Theresa May, who has vowed to eradicate human trafficking in Britain by 2030 — it has become a source of acute shame.
The Chelsea Cloisters block (pictured) of 670 apartments – where Mr Moran has an office – earns him millions of pounds in rent and service charges every year
Among those in the know, the plush apartment block in one of West London’s most exclusive enclaves has long been spoken of in hushed tones as a central base for London’s seedy sex trade.
It was said to be a place where ‘rosy-cheeked men with empty wallets’ could slip out of its grand doors onto salubrious Sloane Avenue — and return to their everyday lives anonymously.
There were whispers of scantily clad Eastern European women flitting between its rooms. Others spoke more crudely of the ‘smell of sex’ in the flats.
One escort agency based in the building once gave it the following description: ‘For the punters that know best, the Chelsea Cloisters . . . has always been a notorious place for accommodating sexy London escorts . . . And the tradition continues today.’
Hungarian escort Ivett Szuda and husband, former Met special constable Karl Ring, hasve been convicted of seven counts of controlling prostitution for gain
Yesterday, following a six-week trial at Isleworth Crown Court, former Hungarian escort Ivett Szuda, 32, was convicted of two counts of human trafficking into the UK for sexual exploitation, relating to two women; 12 counts of controlling prostitution for gain, relating to 11 women and ‘persons unknown’; and four counts of arranging or facilitating travel with a view to exploitation. She was also convicted of possessing criminal property.
Under the Modern Slavery Act, the worst cases of human trafficking can warrant a life sentence.
Szuda’s husband, Karl Ring, a former Metropolitan Police special constable, was convicted of seven counts of controlling prostitution for gain, relating to six named women and ‘persons unknown’; one count of arranging or facilitating travel with a view to exploitation; and one count of possessing criminal property.
Judge Robin Johnson said sentencing would take place within the next four weeks.
Quite how Szuda, who is said to come from a gipsy family in Oroshaza, Hungary, became entwined with Christopher Moran, one of Britain’s richest men — and an aspiring knight of the realm — is as tragic as it is disturbing.
Mr Moran, who has rubbed shoulders with the Queen and other royals through his charity work as Chairman of Co-operation Ireland and as a member of the Prince of Wales’s Charities Council, last night said there is a ‘zero tolerance’ approach to prostitution in the block.
As the freeholder to all of the flats, Mr Moran is entitled to levy a service charge on the properties.
However, his lawyers last night said the money was paid into a not-for-profit company. They did not clarify who owned this company. His lawyers also said Mr Moran has no involvement in the day-to-day management of Chelsea Cloisters and that he did not find out about the criminal prosecutions until last November.
That was after Labour MP Gavin Shuker suggested that Chelsea Cloisters could be ‘the biggest brothel in Britain’.
Three women listed on the Divas website as being available in rooms at Chelsea Cloisters
It can now be revealed that the prosecutions followed a covert Metropolitan Police investigation during which officers investigating human trafficking and prostitution in Chelsea Cloisters visited four times between 2016 and 2017. On each occasion, they found sex workers plying their trade.
Last year,
