16 people arrested in human trafficking investigation
Eight people have been arrested in Belgium and eight others abroad by the Antwerp federal justice police, as part of an investigation into an Afghan criminal organisation suspected of human trafficking.
The Antwerp public prosecutor’s office says the victims were smuggled by various means from the Middle East through the Balkans to Belgium and on to the UK.
The investigation began in October 2023. Victims were sometimes transported by car or lorry and sometimes by boat. They may also have suffered violence and sexual abuse.
The traffickers communicated with each other and with the victims via TikTok. Some of the proceeds were allegedly channelled to Afghanistan, but criminal money was also invested in businesses in Belgium.
"Human trafficking is a serious crime that violates human dignity and reduces a victim to a commodity purely for financial gain"
Wednesday’s arrests were organised with police forces in the UK and Italy. The arrests in Belgium took place in Antwerp, Izegem, Jette, Sint-Truiden and Roeselare. European arrest warrants were issued for the suspects abroad. Mobile phones were confiscated and will be analysed.
“Human trafficking is a serious crime that violates human dignity and reduces a victim to a commodity purely for financial gain,” said a spokesperson for the public prosecutor’s office. “These people often find themselves in vulnerable or hopeless situations, where they are deceived by false promises and confronted with dangerous and inhumane circumstances.”
#FlandersNewsService | Illustration © BELGA PHOTO DIRK WAEM
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