The case hearing of an Asian woman was adjourned by the Criminal High Court of Bahrain as she was accused of forcing other women into prostitution by defrauding them.
The woman is accused of luring the victims to Bahrain on the pretext of providing jobs, which turned out to be fake offers. The jobs used to be fabricated by the husband of the accused woman.
“She was waiting for me at the airport when I arrived. She welcomed me and took me to an apartment, where she locked me. I was told that my job is that of a prostitute,” One of the victims recounting the ordeal stated.
She added that “I initially resisted her attempt to force me into prostitution, but I was threatened and had to accept having sex with strangers,” the victim stated to prosecutors, TBT reported.
It was observed that the victim was brutally beaten. However, she managed to escape from the locked apartment and with the help of a pedestrian she reached the police station and reported the case.
The 43-year-old accused was then arrested by the police. She was questioned by the police and was put on a trial for the crime of holding a woman captive and forcing her into prostitution.
The High Criminal Court in the country then sentenced the accused’s husband to a 10-year jail term and also fined BD2,000 for his involvement in forcing the victim into prostitution.
The husband of the accused also told the victim to pay BD31,300 if she wishes to be released. He was charged with human trafficking, fraud, kidnap, and forcing a woman into prostitution.
The Bahraini Criminal Court ruled previously in June 2020 against a Bahraini man, who led a human trafficking gang of nine, and four other members including three women. All of them were sentenced to 7 years of imprisonment each for human trafficking.
“The convicts were found guilty of luring women and forcing them to work as prostitutes,” the prosecutor stated.
The prosecutor added that members of the gang were fined BD2,000 ($5,297) each and also told to bear the cost of flying the victims back to their home countries, Gulf News reported.
The three Kazakh women will be deported after serving their terms. The gang leader was also sentenced to an extra year for the consumption of drugs.
Meanwhile, Kazakhstan’s embassy in Bahrain reported to the police that a woman had been assaulted and forced to work as a prostitute.
The anti-human trafficking department investigations found the victim and a few more like her, who were lured into the country and forced to work as prostitutes.
The gang of nine, which included three Kazakhstani women, used to lure victims to the country and then took their passports and mobile phones after their arrival in Bahrain, police stated.
The brothel led by this gang was raided by police and they rescued all the victims and also arrested the gang members. The police found BD200,000, narcotics, and the passports of the victims.
In recent years, the government of Bahrain has taken down various sex trafficking gangs in the country. It was even stated that convicted individuals could face up to 15 years in prison and fines of up to BD10,000, apart from paying the cost of repatriating the victims.
Bahrain Penal Code, under article 325, states that those who are convicted of forced prostitution can face 2 to 7 years of imprisonment. In case the victim happens to be a minor 3 to 10 years of imprisonment can be slapped.
