By Jorge de Ory Murga | COO
On September 27, the Sonrisas de Bombay rescue team was able to free 9 girls victims of human trafficking and exploitation, who were being forced into prostitution.
The preparatron of this operation had begun a month before, when the team had been informed about a brothel on Grant Road (Mumbai) where upto nine girls allegedly were being forced into exploitation. As per the received information, five from these girls were from West Bengal, two from Bangladesh, and two others from Mumbai itself. All of them had been deceived and had traveled to the city under fake promises of jobs like domestic work, as actresses or in big companies. The girls, aged between 24 and 35, had immediately been taken to the brothel and forced into prostitution for 5 months.
During previous weeks, members of our team visited the brothel on several occasions to gather information and gain the traffickers'confidence. Finally, it was agreed with the police that the operation would take place on Friday, September 27.
In total, 18 people were involved in the rescue: 12 police officers, 4 members of Sonrisas de Bombay and 2 ciollaborators who acted as decoy clients. The operation began at 4pm and ended at 6am; nine girls were freed and three traffickers were arrested during the raid.
The freed girls were immediately treated by medical personnel and by our social workers, who offered them legal and psychological support. They have all been transferred to a shelter, whereas the three arrested are currently in prison and will have to face a trial.
According to our sources, the girls were not related to each other and had been recruited by acquaintances who had tricked them into going to work in Mumbai. The two victims from Bangladesh will be able to return to their home country, and the authorities are working to support the other girls in their rehabilitation process.
This has been one of the largest operations carried out by our rescue team and, with this, 78 people have already been rescued from human trafficking mafias.
Thanks to the support of people who, like you do, collaborate with us, we can continue carrying out rescue operations like this one and thus achieve a better future for many girls.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
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