Sierra Leone Trafficking Victims Were Never Paid
The employer booked them a one-way flight ticket then confiscated their passports upon arrival in Freetown.
Sierra Leone Trafficking Victims Were Never Paid
Zimbabweans who were trafficked to Sierra Leone after receiving false promises of lucrative jobs, were exploited and forced to work for nearly five months without pay.
The Herald is in possession of flyers used to advertise jobs, targeting individuals aged 18 to 35, requiring a minimum of five Ordinary Level passes and a valid passport.
It is alleged that the employer provided the victims a one-way flight ticket, only to confiscate their passports upon arrival in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone.
Further, it is alleged that some of the victims were forced into participating in online dating scams after each victim was provided with a laptop and instructed to create fake profiles using stolen photos of attractive individuals.
The scammers would then request cash, gift cards, and encourage investments in cryptocurrency schemes.
For all the services they provided, it is said they never got payment after being told the salaries would be deposited into their Zimbabwean accounts.
Two victims of the human trafficking syndicate returned home on Tuesday afternoon and were taken into protective custody by Government officials.
They are assisting authorities with information which may help facilitate the return of over 20 more Zimbabweans who remain holed up in the West African country.
Sierra Leone Trafficking Victims Were Never Paid
Permanent Secretary for Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Mr Simon Masanga, confirmed that they encountered the two alleged victims at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport on Tuesday.
This followed a tip-off received suggesting that some victims would be arriving from Sierra Leone.
“Yes, we stumbled upon something yesterday (Tuesday),” said Mr Masanga yesterday.
Mr Masanga noted that he could not definitively confirm whether the victims worked without pay, as they were told that their salaries would be deposited directly into their local bank accounts.
He added that it was unclear whether these funds were actually deposited, as the victims had yet to verify this information with their banks.
40 Zimbo Jobseekers Trapped in Sierra Leone
Preliminary investigations indicate that the majority of the victims left the country on July 4 this year and that Government was now working flat out to get more information.
Those that have returned will be profiled with a view to identifying the agent who facilitated their recruitment and travel.
