Papua New Guinea’s police have
rescued 39 Indonesian victims of an alleged international
human trafficking operation in Port Moresby.
In a
statement, the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC)
said four Chinese nationals have been detained as police
prepare a range of serious charges.
It said police
executed search warrants at a downtown Port Moresby
residence on Tuesday morning, based on intelligence
developed by the RPNGC Transnational Crime Directorate,
where they located five women and 34 men confined inside a
three-bedroom property.
According to police, the 39
individuals were allegedly approached through social media
with false offers of employment, and subsequently held
against their will as part of a complex people-smuggling
enterprise.
PNG police commissioner David Manning has
warned that there would be “no leniency for those who
traffic and exploit people”.
Manning said
investigators would ensure that every offender was
prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
The
police chief added that they would seek penalties that
reflect the seriousness of these
crimes.
“Investigators are tracing the movements and
connections of the alleged traffickers, including members of
the network operating both within Papua New Guinea and
overseas. We expect this work to lead to further arrests,”
Manning said.
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The safety, welfare and dignity of the
victims remain the immediate priority, and the PNG
government is working with the Indonesian embassy to provide
consular support, he added.
“It is deeply disturbing
that such alleged crimes could occur in our country. At the
same time, we commend the professional RPNGC investigators
that located these victims and brought them to safety,”
Manning said.
Deputy police commissioner for special
operations Donald Yamasombi, who led the operation, said the
outcome marked an important success against the serious
threat of transnational crime.
“Initial inquiries
indicate that those detained may be connected to a wider
transnational human trafficking syndicate operating between
Southeast Asia and the Pacific,” Yamasombi said.
He
said PNG police would work closely with international
policing partners to support efforts to identify and
dismantle any offshore components of the criminal
network.
Investigations are
ongoing.
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