The Hawks, based in Parktown and Lieutenant General Mthandazo Ntlemeza have welcomed the 20-year hefty conviction and sentencing of Ugochukwu Eke (32), who was sentenced on five counts of human trafficking at the South Johannesburg High Court recently.
According to Captain Ndivhuwo Mulamu, spokesperson for the Hawks, the accused was arrested in August 2015 at Rosettenville with allegations that he was running a brothel and kept young girls against their will for sexual exploitation, forcing them to take drugs.
Read Human trafficking is a reality
One of the victims, a 15-year-old girl managed to escape and reported the matter. Hawks’ serious organised crime investigated the matter and he was then arrested.
Eke was found guilty on charges of sexual exploitation of a child, living off the earnings of sexual exploitation and an accomplice to rape.
Ntlemeza applauded the officers who worked around the clock ensuring the ground-breaking sentence.
“We have prioritised human trafficking as a national priority and we are not going to leave any stone unturned to find those who continue to exploit innocent people in this country. We also want to call upon those who have any information about this disturbing trend to report to us directly or their nearest police stations. Well done to the team, the NPA and everyone involved for cementing the nation to trust that crime does not pay,” said Ntlemeza.
