A Mozambican national appeared in the Vredendal Magistrate’s Court on Monday in the Western Cape on charges of trafficking in persons and contravention of the Immigration Act.
The alleged human trafficker Moses Sithole, 38, made a brief court appearance after his arrest on December 5, 2024.
The provincial spokesperson for the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (known as Hawks), Lieutenant Colonel Siyabulela Vukubi said a multidisciplinary team conducted the arrest.
“The team comprising of the Hawks' Economic Protected Resources (EPR), Crime Intelligence, Vanrynsdorp South African Police Service (SAPS), and Department of Home Affairs arrested the 38-year-old suspect,” Vukubi said.
This comes after the team received information about a girl being held against her will.
“The team received information about a foreign national who allegedly kept a 17-year-old girl at his residence against her will. The team proceeded to the suspect's residence in Vanrhynsdorp and upon entering the premises they found the victim. Investigation revealed that she was allegedly trafficked from Mozambique to South Africa two years ago. She was taken for a medical examination and thereafter taken to a place of safety,” Vukubi said.
While Sithole was charged during his first appearance, the matter had to be postponed for an interpreter.
The matter was postponed until Wednesday, December 11.