The Briton was arrested in a “human trafficking” raid at the “Flirt” bar in the seedy Thai resort of Pattaya as dozens of women were loaded into a police car.

A British national and a Thai woman have been arrested on charges of human trafficking in the run-down seaside resort of Sin City in Pattaya, Thailand.

The police raided the “Flirt” bar on the area’s notorious Soi 6 street – with dozens of sex bars – next to the beach on April 5 at around 21:00.

Footage of the raid shows dozens of young women being herded into a police car like crocodiles and taken to the local police station for questioning.

Englishman William Reece and local Jaranya Deeppair (31) were arrested by police chiefs. The Briton was led to the police station in what appeared to be handcuffs.

Officials said arrest warrants were issued for the Brit on April 4 for alleged human trafficking conspiracy.

The police raided the “Flirt” bar on the area’s notorious Soi 6 street – with dozens of sex bars – next to the beach on April 5 at around 21:00. In the photo: Police officers can be seen near the bar

The charges relate to young women being transported from poverty-stricken regions in the country’s rural northeast to serve tourists in the sex industry, where they are paid around 1,500 baht (£35) for sex.

Police Colonel Thanapong Phothi, superintendent of Pattaya City Police Station, said: “We made the arrest to instill confidence in Pattaya’s image among tourists. We have invited the branch employees to give their statements at the station.”

The suspects are in custody pending further trial.

Police said they searched the store but found no illegal substances.

The employees inside were also all over 18, the legal age to work as prostitutes in the country.

The bar is reportedly owned by the Nightwish Group, which is reportedly run by a British expat.

A website linked to the group says it started with a single bar in 2012 and has since grown into a company with more than 500 employees and 27 bars.

A spokesperson for Nightwish Group told MailOnline: “We see these types of raids a lot in Thailand and we are happy to work with the local police.”

“The police confirmed no illegal substances were found in our bar and no one was under the age of 18 – we maintain high standards.

“We believe the raid followed the inaccurate testimony of just one person who was paid to give false testimony and we do not expect anything to come of the charges,” the group added.

“Nightwish takes our responsibilities seriously and cares deeply about the well-being of all our employees. We will never engage in harmful practices.”

Military top brass from Bangkok have been trying for several years to clean up Pattaya, dubbed the “sex capital” of the world.

Pictured: A young woman holds up a series of photos in a photo on the pub’s Instagram page

In the photo: Police officers search the bar during the raid of 5 April

Footage of the raid shows dozens of young women being herded into a police car like crocodiles and taken to the local police station for questioning. Pictured: A police officer talks to women in the bar during a raid on 5 April

They are fighting to kick out misbehaving Brits and Aussies and turn the region into a family-friendly resort to tap into lucrative family markets in China, India and Russia.

However, they face an uphill battle against the entrenched 24-hour sex industry and the endemic corruption that allows it to continue unabated.

The bars, many of which are run by British expats and act as showcases for prostitutes, are also a profitable part of the tourism industry along with massage parlors and street workers.

Before the pandemic, the industry accounted for 21 percent of Thailand’s annual GDP and generated 1.8 trillion baht ($52.3 billion) in revenue.