A family-of-three, who had been accused of forcing a fellow Czech citizen into labouring at a Bradford car wash, walked free from court yesterday.

Kristian Holub, 45, changed his plea to guilty and was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment, but was released because he had been remanded in custody since February.

His wife Ruzena Holubova, 49, and their son, Kristian Putnoki, 20, were facing the same charge, but prosecutor Nick Askins asked that their case be left to lie on the file following Holub’s plea of guilty.

The family, who live at Delph House, Parkwood Rise, Keighley, were hugged outside court by friends and relatives, including their three daughters.

Holub admitted a charge of requiring Milan Tencik to perform forced or compulsory labour, between February 9 and 20 this year, at the Auto Care car wash in St Mary’s Road, Manningham, Bradford.

The Recorder of Bradford, Judge Roger Thomas QC, said that three Czech nationals had come to the UK at the beginning of the year, including Mr Tencik, and lived with Holub and his family for a short period in grim conditions and sleeping on the floor.

The two other Czech men were no longer available to give evidence.

One of them was in prison in Germany and the other had gone to ground.

Judge Thomas said they had come into the country properly.

He told Holub: “There is no evidence that you or your family had anything to do with their coming into the country.”

The judge said Mr Tencik had some work at the car wash for which he was entitled to be paid. But the money, said to be £45, was kept by Holub.

Judge Thomas said: “That’s the extent of your criminality. It does not merit punishment more than the period of time you have been in prison already on remand.”

The three defendants, who had lived in Keighley for several years, had been facing similar charges involving the two men who had now disappeared, and the judge ordered that they should also be left on file.