MEMBERS of a major human trafficking ring who lured women from Kazakhstan to Bahrain after promising them better-paying jobs have been jailed.
The illegal group was run by a Bahraini man, 39, helped by four women from Kazakhstan, three Bahrainis and an Indian man.
The High Criminal Court yesterday found the nine defendants guilty of human trafficking, assault and holding their victims captive.
Four Bahraini men and two women from Kazakhstan were jailed for seven years each, while the Indian man was jailed for three months and two women from Kazakhstan were jailed for two months each for aiding and abetting.
Among the defendants four Bahraini men and two Kazakh women were also fined BD2,000 each.
“The defendants were found guilty of the charges due to sufficient evidence against them,” read the court ruling. They lured their victims and held them captive before forcing them into the vice trade.”
Authorities confiscated BD200,000 believed to be obtained from the illicit trade and drugs.
The defendants were arrested after the Kazakhstan consulate reported to Bahraini authorities that a woman from Kazakhstan had been tortured and forced into the vice trade.
Investigations led authorities to the human trafficking ring which reportedly forced 21 victims into the vice trade.
One of the women from Kazakhstan previously denied being part of the human trafficking ring but admitted to prostitution.
“I came to Bahrain in October 2018 to work as a prostitute,” the 20-year-old female told prosecutors.
“I was then told that a Bahraini man (a 39-year-old businessman) could help me work as a prostitute in Bahrain.
“He helped me work in a hotel as a prostitute and I gave the money to other women from Kazakhstan (the co-defendants).
“I suffered from skin infections because of having sex with a lot of men.
“The Bahraini man told me to go back to my country but I wanted to make more money and told him I would continue having sex with men for money.
“I worked for the Bahraini man and had sex with men for BD50 each.
“I went to different hotels and had sex with many men,” she said.
&uuid=(email))