Police have arrested seven Vietnamese women on charges of soliciting prostitution in the Sukhumvit area of Bangkok and are preparing to deport them.

The women, aged between 22 and 41, were arrested on Sukhumvit Road between Soi 4, also known as Soi Nana, and Soi 11 at around 8pm on Friday, police said on Saturday.

The arrests followed complaints and reports on social media that groups of foreign women were openly offering sexual services and approaching passers-by, causing a public nuisance and damaging Thailand’s tourism image, police said.

Police conducted surveillance before making the arrests.

All seven women were taken to the Suan Phlu immigration office for deportation proceedings. They will also be placed on the immigration blacklist, barring them from entering Thailand again.