Seven men and a woman convicted of trafficking girls

Eight people were sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted of trafficking three teenagers to the UAE to work as prostitutes.

Dubai Criminal Court heard how the Pakistani nationals doctored the passports of the 17-year-old girls.

Police charged the seven men and one woman after raiding a brothel in the Al Baraha area of the city on December 12 last year. Officers received a tip-off that underage girls were being exploited.

“We sent an undercover police officer to pose as a customer,” a police lieutenant said. “After he was taken into the flat and offered to have sex with one of the teenagers, he gave us the signal and we raided the place.”

After the raid, police shut down the apartment and confiscated cash, mobile phones and other items.

At a court hearing in May last year, six men admitted to human trafficking charges and facilitating prostitution. The woman denied trafficking but admitted to facilitating prostitution. She said her only role in the case was to book airline tickets for the girls.

The eighth accused is still on the run and was convicted in his absence.

One of the girls told prosecutors she was contacted by the woman who asked if she wanted to be a sex worker.

“I agreed and they forged my documents and passport so I could come,” she said. “I worked for three months and then returned home.”

The girl said she later returned to Dubai on a tourist visa for another three months.

The second girl told officers she worked as a prostitute for six months, while the third worked for three months before they were all arrested.

Subject to appeals, the court ordered that each of the seven convicted would be deported after their prison terms.

Police charged the gang after raiding a brothel in Al Baraha area of Dubai on December 12 last year