Police free 9 from fake Big Brother house

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Nine women tricked into thinking they were reality TV show contestants and lured into an Istanbul villa were rescued by Turkish military police after two months confinement, a police spokesman said Thursday.

Cameras in the villa filmed the women 24-hours a day, providing a live stream of images for Internet users who had paid to access the footage, the spokesman said.

The women, all from Turkey, according to the Turkish press, had answered an advert seeking contestants for a "Big Brother"-style television show. They passed an audition and selection process before entering the house.

"The women's parents called the police after they didn't hear anything from them. The military police went to investigate and heard the women screaming from inside," the spokesman said, adding the raid took place Monday.

Police detained three men and prosecutors are investigating, he said.

According to Turkish media, the women had signed a contract agreeing they would have no contact with their families and would face a fine of 50,000 Turkish lira if they left early.

(Reporting by Selcuk Gokoluk; Writing by Alexandra Hudson)