Det Insp Steve Bartlett is coordinating the campaign

Operation Pentameter, a national scheme launched on Tuesday, is aimed at catching the criminals behind people trafficking and sexual exploitation.

A team of officers, based in Ferndown, will focus on a number of areas across the county, in particular Bournemouth.

Police said they also want the public to contact them with any information.

It is likely that these women will have no money and both they and their families are threatened with harm if they do not co-operate Det Insp Steve Bartlett

Det Insp Steve Bartlett said: "In the last 12 months, there has been information suggesting that females are being brought into Dorset from Eastern Europe - as well as the Far East - and it is very likely they are being forced into prostitution.

"It is believed that organised criminals in countries such as Lithuania, Romania, Estonia and Poland are luring female victims with promises of well-paid jobs in the UK and other European countries.

"Once in the hold of these criminals, they can end up in the UK forced to work as prostitutes in brothels and their passports taken away from them.

"It is likely that these women will have no money and both they and their families are threatened with harm if they do not co-operate.

"We recognise that the sex trade is a sensitive subject, particularly in Bournemouth, and it is apparent that some foreign girls from poorer countries are travelling to Dorset to work willingly as prostitutes."

All 55 police forces in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland are taking part in Operation Pentameter - co-ordinated by the Association of Chief Police Officers.