The Saraya Territorial Gendarmerie Brigade has dismantled a proxy network in the gold mining village of Dambala, a locality located in the commune of Missirah Sirimana, in the Saraya Department, a security source told APS on Monday. “We have arrested a woman of Nigerian nationality and responsible for a network of proxénétisme and human trafficking in the gold mining village of Dambala”, said the same security source. The woman in question had under her coupe four young Nigerian girls aged 18, 20 and 22 years respectively, including two sisters. ‘One of the victims who had previously worked in a restaurant in Lagos had been approached by a relative. The latter had promised her a better paid job in the restaurant in Senegal, before convincing her to embark for this country in the company of her sister, via le Bénin’, explained the security source. Elle confides that the young girls would have quickly deschanté après leur arrivée à Dambala.. Instead of a contract of employment in good and due form, they would have received each a torch and packets of condoms. Le piège s’est refermé sur elles, when elles ont découvert that it was not a question of a work in the restaurant but rather of sexual exploitation. “The victims were informed that they should prostitute themselves in order to reimburse each one a debt of 2 million 500 thousand CFA francs [for] the travel expenses under threat of mystical reprisals”, explained the security source contacted by the APS. She emphasizes that they owe their greetings to one of them who managed to flee to alert the territorial brigade of the Saraya gendarmerie. “The descent of the forces of order has allowed the arrest of one of the responsible on the spot, the one in charge of collecting the money and who according to our secret sources would have also recruited girls for his own account. The real owner of the bar would currently be in Nigeria”, she continued. The accused and the manager of the bar were placed in custody in the premises of the Saraya brigade. They must be referred to the tribunal de grande instance de Kédougou. The victims were taken care of by the Enda Jeunesse Action centre in Saraya. This operation highlighted the existence of a vast network of human trafficking and sexual exploitation operating between Nigeria, Benin and Senegal. This network would take advantage of the vulnerability of young girls and women to make false promises of jobs in the hairdressing or restaurant sectors. Arriving at their destination, the victims are forced to engage in prostitution, under the influence of fear and sometimes mystical threats, according to a security source. The Kédougou region’s defence and security forces are stepping up border security operations to combat banditry, human trafficking and dismantling illegal gold mining sites, while also combating violent extremism and the terrorist threat.
Saraya: the gendarmerie has dismantled a network of proxénétisme in Dambala
