Peruvian women rescued from suspected human trafficking ring in EC
Three Peruvian women have been rescued from a suspected human trafficking and cybercrime operation at a lodge in Bluewater Bay in Gqeberha, in the Eastern Cape.
Provincial Hawks spokesperson Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana says an 18-year-old woman was allegedly recruited under false pretenses and brought to South Africa, with the promise of employment at an online call centre.
She reportedly discovered that the premises was being used to conduct online scams targeting people in Peru.
Mhlakuvana says information provided by the woman led law enforcement to the premises on Friday, where they encountered 26 individuals, including 14 Peruvian women and 12 men.
“The men reportedly included two South African nationals allegedly employed as drivers, two Chinese nationals identified as tenants of the premises associated with the online business and eight Peruvian men.
The circumstances surrounding the individuals’ presence at the premises and their respective roles are being investigated.
The remaining 23 individuals were taken to various local police stations pending further investigation.
No arrests have been made, and the investigation is continuing.”
5News aggregated this summary from the outlet’s public feed. The full article, with all the context, is on www.sabcnews.com — the content belongs to SABC News.
