After Dark Gentlemans' Club, South Africa
The Gauteng kingpin is said to have direct links to human trafficking syndicates in Thailand and usually receives new recruits from OR Tambo International Airport.The sources said that three kingpins - who were now in hiding - had been identified, two in KwaZulu-Natal and one in Gauteng, and warrants for their arrest had been issued. Unconfirmed reports state that the police, as part of their ongoing investigations, have uncovered a money trail between South African criminals and their Thai counterparts, running into millions of rands.
Location
South Africa · After Dark Gentlemans' Club · 2006 (location generalized to protect survivors)
Response & intervention
26 women and four men were arrested in two raids. The raid led to the closure of the After Dark club in Cato Street and the discovery of other women at a private property in Pinetown. Investigations by the Tribune have revealed that some members of the SAPS had used their houses to keep Thai women. The policemen allegedly worked in tandem with trafficking syndicates and were instrumental in instilling fear in the girls, forcing them into prostitution.
Lawyers representing the Thai nationals brought an application before the Durban magistrate's court for the release of the suspects from custody. This was opposed by the state, which argued that the suspects were already in the country illegally and that they should not be granted bail. The application failed and the 25 suspects were transferred to Westville Prison. The other five were moved to a safe house and placed under witness protection. The following year, in April 2007, 24 of the "suspects" were deported.
Jimmy Howse, whose list of clients has included former housing boss Mdu Khoza, attorney Ian Stokes and the AbaThembu King, Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, has been consulted to represent the girls.
Documented on the original SlaveryMap (2008–2016). We don't have a verifiable source on file yet — use “Report a problem” below to add one.