London ( CNN ) -- Two of three women believed to have been held captive in London for more than 30 years met the man suspected of holding them through a `` shared political ideology , '' London 's Metropolitan Police revealed Saturday . Police announced Thursday they had arrested a couple on suspicion of being involved in forced labor and domestic servitude after authorities took a Malaysian woman , 69 , Irish woman , 57 , and 30-year-old Briton to safety from a property in Lambeth , south London . They said the man and woman were both 67 and not British nationals . In a statement Saturday , Cmdr . Steve Rodhouse said the suspects were of Indian and Tanzanian origin and had arrived in Britain in the 1960s . `` We believe that two of the victims met the male suspect in London through a shared political ideology , and that they lived together at an address that you could effectively call a 'collective , ' '' he said . `` The people involved , the nature of that collective and how it operated is all subject to our investigation , and we are slowly and painstakingly piecing together more information , '' he said . Rodhouse said the collective somehow ended , but the women continued to live with the suspects . `` How this resulted in the women living in this way for over 30 years is what we are seeking to establish , but we believe emotional and physical abuse has been a feature of all the victims ' lives . '' Rodhouse said the 30-year-old woman did have a birth certificate , but that was all the official documentation police could find . `` We believe she has lived with the suspects and the other victims all her life , but of course at this early stage we are still seeking out evidence . '' On Friday , Rodhouse said that labeling the investigation as domestic servitude or forced labor was `` far too simple '' and that police were trying to understand `` the invisible handcuffs '' that had controlled the women . `` What we have uncovered so far is a complicated and disturbing picture of emotional control over many years . Brainwashing would be the most simplest term , yet that belittles the years of emotional abuse these victims have had to endure , '' he said . Police said Freedom Charity alerted them to the suspects in October after receiving a phone call from one of the victims . `` The woman found the courage to contact the charity after seeing a documentary on television we are informed was aired by the BBC , '' it said in a statement Friday . With the `` help of sensitive negotiations '' by the charity , police met with the Irish and British women on October 25 . The women identified the place where they said they had been held , allowing police to rescue the 69-year-old Malaysian woman and take all three to safety , Metropolitan Police said . Freedom Charity spokeswoman Aneeta Prem said the organization took `` immediate action '' to plan a rescue after learning of the women 's situation . `` Facilitating their escape was achieved using utmost sensitivity and secrecy and with the safety of the women as our primary concern , '' she said , describing the work of those involved as `` outstanding . '' A television documentary on forced marriages relating to the work of Freedom Charity prompted the call for help . `` They 'd seen me on various news channels talking about forced marriage and dishonor violence , and they said I had a face they trusted , so they called our 24-hour helpline , '' Prem told CNN . She said the process was `` very difficult '' and charity CEO Vineeta Thornhill was personally involved in the negotiations . `` Throughout the process until they were rescued -- so it was over a week of speaking to them -- she gained their trust and confidence , and they believed that when they came out , they would be taken to safety , they would be looked after , '' Prem said . `` These ladies have spent 30 years in captivity as slaves and have come out with absolutely nothing at all , '' she said . `` The road to freedom is n't going to be an easy one . '' On Saturday , Prem said Freedom Charity had seen an `` extraordinary '' rise in calls to its help line since news of the case broke . She said the three victims need to `` go through their rehabilitation undisturbed , without being identified . ''
A couple is alleged to have held Two women captive in London for Saturday . Police arrested the pair Thursday but later released them on bail until Thursday . On Saturday police said the couple were of Indian and Tanzanian origin . Two of the victims appeared to have met the man through ' a shared political ideology '