The number of human trafficking cases detected in Ireland increased significantly in 2015, as did the trafficking of minors, according to a new Department of Justice report.
Figures released by the department show 78 alleged victims of human trafficking were reported to gardaí in 2015, up from 46 the previous year.
The figures for 2015 also include 23 minors, representing almost a 100 per cent increase in child cases compared with 2014.
Two-thirds of all victims of suspected human trafficking were female, and An Garda Síochána received its first reported case of trafficking involving a transgender person in 2015.
Just under a fifth of victims were Irish, all of whom were said to be underage victims of sexual exploitation.
Gardaí recorded a sizeable increase in the number of Nigerians trafficked to Ireland, most of whom were females exposed to sexual exploitation.
Forced labour was another prominent factor behind trafficking operations, and there was a 229 per cent increase in such cases in 2015 compared with 2014 when only seven were reported.
People from countries outside the European Economic Area represented almost half of cases brought to gardaí.
Immigration status
There were 12 cases involving asylum-seekers, 12 involving people who were given permission to remain in the State as part of their immigration status, and two victims of trafficking had no immigration status in Ireland.
The most active organisations which referred cases to gardaí were the Immigrant Council of Ireland, the Migrant Rights Centre and Ruhama, which offers support to victims of prostitution and human trafficking.
Gardaí initiated 91 new investigations in connection with suspected human trafficking in 2015, and overall there were 271 such cases still active by the end of that year.
Of the 13 cases involving suspected human trafficking which were brought before the courts in 2015, almost all culminated in convictions and custodial sentences of up to seven years, while one accused was acquitted on all charges due to a lack of evidence.