In the biggest raid yet to stop suspected human trafficking in KwaZulu-Natal, and anonymous tipoff led to 16 underage girls have been rescued from a brothel in the notorious Point area of Durban.
On Thursday, officers from elite outfits, including the Hawks, Durban Organised Crime Unit and SAPS Dog Unit, along with members of the Criminal Record Centre, the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit and Asset Forfeiture Unit, as well as metro police, swooped on a bright orange building in Rochester Street.
In the dying daylight, Operation Victim swung into action. With sirens wailing, police vehicles blocked the entrance to the building.
Officers flooded in and, within minutes, young girls were being led out.
While many appeared obviously underage, even hardened police officers were shocked when a slight girl was brought out, obviously in the first months of pregnancy. She was suspected to be just 12.
Many of the scantily clad girls appeared to be glassy-eyed, but joked as they were loaded into the waiting vans.
Standing among the crowd of Point residents who gathered at the scene was Pastor Rodney de Gee of the Umgeni Community Empowerment Centre, who was responsible for taking the rescued girls to safe houses.
As De Gee watched the stream of girls being brought out, he was visibly moved.
“Look at all these young girls coming out of this house. This is plain human trafficking.
“We are very pleased the police are doing something about this, and we would like to see the whole city rid of this scourge,” he said.
De Gee confirmed the young girls would be taken to hospital for “detoxing”, and then to safe houses.
“They will receive counselling and we will then start tracing where they come from, and hopefully reunite them with their families.”
A bystander said taxis and buses regularly stopped outside the building, and the girls were routinely seen getting into vehicles, allegedly to perform sexual acts.
Police confirmed that the building contained “smoking rooms” where drug abuse took place.
The Durban Organised Crime Unit’s Warrant Officer CM Freese said drugs and alcohol had been confiscated.
He also confirmed that four arrests had been made.
“The community was outraged about these young children, who were seen coming in and out of this building.
“We urge any parents who suspect any of these girls may be their daughter to contact me,” Freese said.
On Friday night, ChildLine’s KZN director, Linda Naidoo, said they were “really, really thrilled” that the girls had been rescued.
“An anonymous caller first came through to our crisis line to let us know about these girls. It’s really wonderful that concerned residents gave us valid information. We are really grateful and thank you to those who called for trusting us,” she said.
Three men and one woman appeared in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Friday afternoon on charges related to human trafficking, keeping a brothel and dealing in drugs.
The case was postponed to next Friday for further investigation.
- Sunday Argus