Aboard a tourist boat on the Amazon River, in the State of Amazonas, Brazil, 2007
Brazil BR
A man from Georgia in the United States, was accused of trafficking young women/offering sex with underage girls to customers paying to go on his fishing tours of the Amazon basin. His ex-wife was president of the fishing operation. The boat was described as a high-end river cruiser popular with wealthy American fishers. The four Brazilian plaintiffs (one was aged 12 at time of exploitation) reported that the man used a combination of promises, alcohol, and drugs to lure them onto the fishing boat. Once aboard, they were coerced into performing sexual acts with the man and his customers. Brazilian prosecutors state that there is both photographic and video evidence including “numerous images of Brazilian women in sexual poses within the vessels and in the company of foreign tourists.” It is described that the man used his agents and employees to recruit customers in the US to engage in such ‘sex tourism’. Court documents from Brazil and the US suggest that customers included members of a group that are currently under investigation for human trafficking, prostitution and child sex tourism. The man from Georgia sent his employees into the local community, and nightclubs along the Amazon to recruit young girls. In return, they were reported to have been paid a ‘modest’ sum of money. One report states: “The case is noteworthy because it is the first time that the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) will be used by alleged victims of trafficking to seek damages from a sex tour operation.” An example of the court transcript can be viewed here: http://sandyfrost.newsvine.com/_news/2011/04/30/6562102-brazil-prosecutes-schair-co-for-running-house-of-prostitution A YouTube newscast showing the girls being interviewed, as well as footage of the boat: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aENcxcxC2gk&feature=player_embedded