One of the revelations to come forward in the Wikileaks infodump was that an undercover investigator from the US embassy was offered sex services at former strip club Goldfinger, and that it was suspected that some women who worked there were being physically abused.
Goldfinger, in the years that strip clubs were legal in Iceland, had a seedy reputation even among strip clubs, with former employees reporting that prostitution was taking place at the establishment. Ásgeir Davíðsson, the owner of the club, has repeatedly asserted that none of these allegations are true.
However, the US embassy in Iceland, as part of a yearly report on human trafficking, sought to conduct an investigation of their own, a leaked diplomatic cable reveals.
In 2006, the embassy interviewed a number of Icelanders about human trafficking, among them Guðrún Jónsdóttir of the crisis centre Stígamót, Suðurnes chief of police Jóhann Benediktsson, and Ásgeir himself.
While Ásgeir told the embassy what he tells everybody about what went on at Goldfinger, the embassy sent an unnamed official undercover to investigate. That official reported that he was offered “sex services” at the club, which the official said indicates that at the very least, owners turn a blind eye to illegal activities at the establishment. They did not believe the management was unaware of prostitution at Goldfinger.
Furthermore, the investigator noticed one of the women working there had a black eye, which the official felt could indicate that some of the women might be physically abused.
It is not indicated what domestic legal action, if any, was taken in light of this information.
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