Trafficking trio appear in court

The women were invited to Cape Town on job offers. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

The women were invited to Cape Town on job offers. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

Published Nov 2, 2021

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The case of three family members who allegedly trafficked women from Springbok has been postponed.

The trio, Edward Tambe Ayuk, his wife Leandre Williams and his brother Yannick Ayuk , briefly made their first appearance in the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday.

It is understood that the two Ayuk brothers recruited women from Springbok, in the Northern Cape, with the help of Williams who befriended most of the women and then held them against their will in Brooklyn, where the two men resided.

The women were invited to Cape Town on job offers. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann

The alleged traffic ring began in 2015 when one of the complainants was offered a job without specific details about what she would be doing.

When she arrived in Cape Town, she would learn that the job was as a sex work, and that Ayuk (accused 1) would be her alleged pimp.

When she refused to work as a sex worker, he allegedly threatened her, and forced her to use drugs.

Ayuk allegedly took all the money she made and in return the complainant received payment in drugs and was assaulted if she did not make enough money.

According to court documents the complainant was locked up if she was not working on the street and was guarded either by the two brothers or other unknown men.

The trio struck again, when Williams invited another victim under the pretence to collect a parcel from her husband.

The complainant agreed and Williams organised and paid for transport.

When she arrived in Cape Town, Ayuk allegedly tried to force her into sex worker and when the complainant refused, he allegedly threatened to assault her.

Unlike the first complainant the victim managed to escape and contacted her family who rescued her.

The trio then followed the same modus operandi with a third victim, allegedly forcing her into sex worker after tricking her to travel to Cape Town. They allegedly forced her to use drugs before she worked on the streets.

The complainant also managed to escape and returned to Springbok.

By 2017 the trio had tricked another three more victims using the exact same tactics, they managed to escape while one woman was rescued by the police.

The three were arrested on 40 counts ranging from kidnapping, rape, assault, dealing in drugs, assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm, living on the earnings of prostitution, using the services of a victim of trafficking, debt bondage and also trafficking of persons.

The case continues on Wednesday.