A Nigerian man and a South African woman accused of trying to force a Zimbabwean woman into the Milnerton sex trade have appeared in court on human-trafficking charges.
Hawks spokesman Captain Philani Nkwalase said the two accused, aged 33 and 34, had been arrested in Farnworth Street, Rugby, on Thursday March 28.
They appeared in court on the same day. The case was postponed to Monday April 8 and then again to Wednesday April 17 for a bail application. The two remain in custody.
Police say the 33-year-old female accused allegedly recruited and transported the 35-year-old alleged victim from Johannesburg to Cape Town on Tuesday March 5.
“It is alleged that the victim travelled to Johannesburg, from Zimbabwe in search of work. When she could not find employment, she decided to return to her home country. During the arrangements to travel back home, the victim met an unknown woman in March who told her that she has work for her in Cape Town. There were no discussions about the type of employment, and the two travelled to Cape Town,” Captain Nkwalase said.
Table View police spokeswoman Captain Adriana Chandler said the Zimbabwean woman had then met a man in Milnerton who had told her she was to start work immediately as a sex worker.
“The woman did not want to do it but was threatened and forced to work as a sex worker.”
In November 2017, two brothers were arrested for running a brothel in Brooklyn and were charged with human trafficking (“Suspects appear in court for ‘brothel’,” Tabletalk, November 8, 2017).
A month later, three people, two foreigners and a South African woman, were arrested for luring a Johannesburg woman to Cape Town and turning her into a sex worker, (“Human traffickers nabbed in Milnerton,” Tabletalk, December 13, 2017).
The Table View Neighbourhood Watch’s Laura Outhet said: “There is no time frame to report a missing person, one needs to go directly to their nearest police station with all the relevant information. There are also various organisations who will assist with spreading the word once you have a case number.”
Social Development MEC Albert Fritz said it was an offence under the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act (7 of 2013), not to report human trafficking.
The public can contact the South African National Human Trafficking Resource Line at 0800 222 777 toll free.
