Sexual slaves from Ukraine

The girl despaired and jumped naked from the third floor window when another group of men were entering the room. She crawled down the roadway. Police, called by witnesses, took the victim to a psychiatric hospital, where doctors heard a horrible story of a Ukrainian woman about sexual slavery, beatings, electric shock and special "washcloths" that allow to serve clients even during menstruation. One month after the treatment, the girl was deported home. Meanwhile, the underground brothel continues to operate.

This is one of the many stories of sex slaves, which sounds very scary only to those who have never encountered it. In fact, these are just the harsh everyday life of a huge human trafficking market, one of the leaders of which can be called Ukraine, where organized criminal groups engaged in this difficult business feel quite free. Especially against the background of the global pandemic, when small job market in fact came to naught, leaving a huge number of people without work. Including young Ukrainian women who are more active in finding work abroad.

(schedule of the International Organization for Migration)

The idea of ​​this investigation was born a few months ago, when the author was in hospital, where a young girl of seventeen years of model appearance was treated in the same department with him. The beauty was going to go to China to earn money after treatment. And to all the stories about risk, possible slavery and human trafficking, she smiled and replied that it was all in the distant past.

In the course of our investigation, we analyzed hundreds of criminal cases and court decisions on crimes committed in the last few years, and identified the system of the sex slave market with well-established and unchanging schemes. Why? And because there is no punishment. Of the several hundred criminal cases, managers and owners of criminal channels were punished in only 3% of cases. In other cases, only the lower criminal level was punished: recruiters and carriers.

(schedule of the International Organization for Migration)

The names of the heroes of our investigation have been changed for their safety. And the editorial board decided not to publish some facts and arguments at all, because the girls are afraid of criminals revenge.

Go to Istanbul for sex

"Upon arrival in Istanbul, the girls are met by Mammad, who transports them to the Perintos Hotel and informs them that they have been sold and must repay their debt by providing free body services. Mammad takes their documents to prevent the escape. He watches over them with his assistant named Kemal, deprives the victims of the opportunity to move freely and organizes the whole process of their sexual services. " - says Lyudmila from Poltava.

The undisputed leader in sexual slavery not only of Ukrainian but also of Slavic women, of course, is Turkey. The demand for girls here does not depend on the season, and in criminal cases, Istanbul, Ankara, Kemer, Antalya, Kumburgaz, Manavgat and Marmaris are most often mentioned.

"Trafficking in human beings: expert explanation"
October 18 is European Anti-Trafficking Day. According to the National Police, in the first half of 2021, 130 facts were revealed, about 100 criminal proceedings of this category were sent to court. The vast majority of detected cases are related to involvement in criminal activities, in second and third place - labor and sexual exploitation of citizens.

But the modern slave trader lives not only in mainland Turkey. With the same success, girls are "sold" to Muslim Cyprus: Nicosia, Larnaca, Ercan, Limassol - a huge tourist flow regularly generates considerable demand for "play and sex", which go along the shadow side of the economy side by side. An example is the nightclub NANEDAN in Nicosia, which also operates as a casino.

Eighteen-year-old Olga from Lviv, who went to Istanbul with her friend to work as a waitress and store cleaner, was eventually lucky. She was able to escape and contact the police. One of her regular customers helped. However, the escape was successful not  at the first time. The naive girl fell into sexual slavery immediately on the way out of the airport, where a young Turk who met her made it clear that until he earns the money spent on her purchase - will have to engage in prostitution.

This story perfectly illustrates one of the key methods used by modern slave traders - debt bondage, in which girls fall into their homeland, borrowing documents and buying clothes and plane tickets on loan. Criminals not only do not mind borrowing money, but even insist on it. However, all the generosity of the "employer" ends immediately upon arrival. Declare a significant amount of debt and threaten physical violence in case of refusal to pay. And not only to slave, but also to relatives who remained in the homeland.

Of course, you can try and refuse, as, for example, Ulyana from Kharkiv region, who came to work as a waitress, but after talking to friends in the apartment where she was brought - she realized that she would have to engage in prostitution.

Ulyana generously seasoned her refusal with a scandal, after which she was banally taken to one of the office buildings. Here, in an inconspicuous office, the pimp received a considerable amount of money for her. Ulyana suddenly became ill and she fainted.

The girl regained consciousness after some time after she was watered with cold water from a hose. Fully undressed, with bruises on her hands. There were unfamiliar Turks in the room, one of whom gave her an injection after hitting her several more times.

But this story has a relatively happy ending. Ulyana managed to escape after imprisonment in Turkey. Already at home, she was met by the staff of the International Organization for Migration, and placed in a rehabilitation center, where she was treated.

Asian sexual slavery

Jakarta is the capital of Indonesia, a city with more than ten million official population. However, these data can be considered significantly underestimated. According to various estimates, about 4 million tourists flock here every year. And one of the explanations for this demand can be called sex tours.

Malioboro is called one of the most famous clubs in the capital, where you can feel all the beauty of selling love. You can easily find numerous ads on the Internet, according to which the club constantly needs dancers and girls for сonsummation - meeting customers and encouraging them to spend money in the institution. The girl receives a percentage of the amount spent by the guest as a fee. This work is the hook that young girls cling to.

Seemingly harmless work that involves nothing but the use of charm is actually sexual slavery. And this mechanism of consummation is common not only in Indonesia. Wherever a girl goes to earn money: in the UAE, Lebanon, Cambodia, China or Indonesia - nothing but sexual slavery.

In addition to the Internet and job advertisements, there are recruiters in Ukraine who attract young people with promises of easy and relatively simple earnings. And the worst thing about all this is that the police are simply powerless: new ones immediately appear in the place of the detained recruiters, and Jakarta law enforcement officers do not respond to any requests from Ukrainian colleagues.

(schedule of the International Organization for Migration)

By the way, recruiters not only find girls, but also involve them in criminal activities. Yes, in one criminal case there is evidence that the victims were promised a free flight to the UAE if they find friends to travel on the same terms.

 

The organizer meets the women at the airport and takes them to the club, where an accomplice is waiting for him. Eventually they moved into a house near the club. It is forbidden to leave a room without windows. This is a two-story building that is guarded around the clock and is home to a large number of girls from around the world. All movements of the club and its territory are strictly controlled by security guards. And of course, prostitution is a job, and if you give up, you will never get home. According to one of the club's administrators, the Bangkok slave traders are looking forward to the particularly rebellious, from where it is impossible to return alive, - said Oksana from Kyiv region.

Despite the danger, the girls were able to write several appeals to the Ukrainian police and diplomatic missions through their regular customers. But it didn't work. During inspections of the club, when Indonesian police and Ukrainian embassy staff in Jakarta arrived to pick up the girls and return them to Ukraine, the owner of Malioboro simply ordered the girls hidden.

Despite the surrealism of what is happening, especially for the minds of modern man, this is happening not only in Jakarta. In the capital of Lebanon - Beirut, there is also the famous Asian club "Mega Night Club Swing", which continues to actively hire girls from around the world. Officially - for the art program, but in fact - in sexual slavery.

The slave trade did not escape Europe. For example, the Bodega Entertainment Club in Poland pays recruiters an average of $ 1,300 for a Ukrainian girl. This is where Valentina from Ivanovo-Frankivsk region came to work as a waitress. Other future slaves were offered jobs in agriculture. By the way, all the information about illegal European brothels, which the editorial office was able to obtain during the investigation, of course, was sent to the police service of the European Union - Europol.

Hundreds of thousands of slaves

Today, Ukraine, which has been a supplier of human material for many years in a row, ranks 49th out of 167 countries in the ranking of the prevalence of modern slavery, in which 681,000 Ukrainians live today.

According to the president of the public organization La Strada-Ukraine, human trafficking remains one of the most profitable areas of the fast-growing criminal business. According to various estimates, the annual global income of the criminal sector in this area is from $ 5 to $ 7 billion per year.

(schedule of the International Organization for Migration)

According to a report by the US State Department on June 20, 2019, Ukraine is classified as a second-category country in terms of the number of people sold. This means that anyone, regardless of gender, age or social status, can fall victim to the slave traders.

"Human trafficking: how not to fall into slavery"

July 30 - The world celebrates Anti-Trafficking Day. This problem remains relevant even in the 21st century. Due to the difficult social and economic situation, more and more Ukrainians are going abroad in search of a better life. There, outside their home country, they often become a profit for traders.

But even these figures are very low. In fact, the market for the slave trade of Ukrainian girls is much higher. It is impossible to trace the real volume - because the victims mostly do not turn to the police.

Of course, unmarried girls, single mothers, orphans and the poor are at risk. But recently there has been a tendency to gradually increase the number of abductions of completely self-sufficient people.

The authors managed to "consider" and document the most common criminal schemes of the slave trade, but the story continues. Ukrainian law enforcement agencies are acting very weakly, and after a while another criminal replaces one: unfortunately, no positive changes have been seen so far.

According to our estimates, only 61 criminals are wanted in Ukraine today under Article 149 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Here are their photos - you may know one of the defendants - then you can call the police.

And all - in the methods of the Ukrainian police. In the pursuit of statistics and the disclosure of cases, law enforcement officers detain the lower echelons.

Thus, one of the oldest forms of this scheme can be considered street prostitution, which does not require significant investments in brothels. The girls find their clients on the street and serve in deserted places or cars.

One of the organizers of such a "street trade", which Ukrainian law enforcement officers managed to identify, was a Bulgarian citizen Asan, a native of the village of Koriten, Krusharsky district, Varna region.

The clever Bulgarian, who organized the sexual exploitation of Ukrainian women on the roads of Warsaw, was not original. While providing loans for travel abroad, the pimp drove the girls into bondage, and upon arrival in Warsaw, confiscated documents and threatened physical violence, forcing them to engage in prostitution in the Warsaw Bypass Road.

Ukrainian police provided all their information to their Bulgarian counterparts, declaring him internationally wanted, and Asan was even detained in his native Bulgaria. However, he was released the next day on the grounds that, in accordance with the European Convention on the Extradition of Offenders, persons who are Bulgarian citizens would not be extradited for prosecution. Criminal proceedings Ukrainian law enforcement officers were terminated, as were all operational and investigative measures.

Another reason for leaving to earn money are loans. Slave traders gain access to credit histories and search the Internet for girls with debts to banks, offering them ways to repay debts quickly and easily. Violetta from Odessa, who received an offer to work in France and Italy, also fell into this trap. And together with Violetta they found 10 more victims of the same recruiters.

About the same young girls go to the promised Israel. Recruiters offer them high-paying jobs as bartenders, dancers and waiters, provide flights and "meetings" at the airport.

During the investigation, the authors found that the criminals used the Global Medical Organization medical clinic to provide documents for work, as well as copies of leases at 138-1306 Ben-Gurion Street in Bat Yang.

Ukrainian girls are also popular in Poland and the Czech Republic. For example, for many years on the outskirts of Kostrzyn nad Odrom, on Gorzhuvska Street, there was a night club "Millennium", which was "handed over" to Polish law enforcement by Ukrainian pimps-competitors. Its owner admitted during interrogation at the prosecutor's office that he had "hired" girls from Eastern Europe for many years: "I did not control what they did during non-working hours. They could do whatever they wanted, "he was quoted as saying by German media.

The same girls from Eastern Europe said that the Millennium building had three floors and was fenced with a metal gate with latches. When the gate opened, a signal was heard, and while the guest was greeted by the hostess, the working girls went down to the bar. The club had a small square, swimming pool, jacuzzi and sauna.

On the first floor of the Millennium there were two rooms where the owner lived, and behind them were a kitchen, a room for bartenders, a warehouse for goods and a garage. In addition, there was a bar, which was entered from the street and the kitchen - that's where the girls who work there came to the club. On the second floor of the institution there were six rooms where the girls lived and where they brought clients.

The institution did not stand still even when the women's "menstruation" began. And to eliminate inconveniences for clients, "employees" were forced to vaginally insert special washcloths. And when there were no special - did not disgust and ordinary for shower, which are simply cut to size.

Lech P., 58, the owner of Millennium, was given a suspended sentence and has now opened new nightclubs, brothels. He now owns the Simone Hotel and Club in Nizhny Osin, which has no customers, as it is located near the Hohenwutzen border crossing. And any administrator of the club or hotel will tell the inspection authorities that Ukrainian women are officially registered as cleaners or waitresses.

Ukrainian girls also failed to see tourist attractions in the Czech Republic. One of the victims said that the "employer" practically dragged her into a two-story building on Mount St. Sebastian in Khomotov, where there were no advertising signs and identification signs. Inside the house, she went upstairs and chose a room. Later, the girls, who were already in the house at the time, told about the peculiarities of sexual services. The working day lasted from 5 pm to 5 am. All "workers" in the room. The client chose a girl, and the money for her was given to the bartender, and only then did they go up to the room for sexual pleasure.

Sunny Seychelles and the sex industry channels

Unfortunately, Ukrainian women are popular far beyond continental Europe. So, Olena from Luhansk region was offered to go to the Seychelles as a hostess. In a group with other girls, she went to the island of Mahe, where in a hopeless situation, in a foreign country, without means of subsistence and the opportunity to defend their personal rights, they were forced to provide paid sexual services.

During the investigation, the authors were able to identify the main channels of "supply" for the sex industry:

• Khmelnytsky Canal - young women are sent to the Olmid hotel and restaurant complex in Slubice, Poland;

- Greek Canal - passes through the Intercontinental Hotel in Athens, where girls provide sexual services;

• Czech Channel - the girls are taken to the village of Folmava, Czech Republic. Where they "pass" to the owners of the night club "Palm Beach";
• Uzhhorod Canal - in the night club "LouLou Kabaret" in Kosice, Slovak Republic - use in the sex industry and prostitution;
• Another Czech channel is to the village of Babilon in the Czech Republic's Domažlitsky district, where the girls are handed over to the owner of the non-stop nightclub.

In the nightclub "Non-Stop" the doors are locked, and girls are not even allowed to leave the room:

 "Once we went for a walk at the gas station. There were 5-6 girls. The assistant owner of the club slept. We went to buy food and went to the river. After that, we were fined 300 euros and not fed for three days. One of the girls ran away from the club, her owner quickly found her and beat her well. "

In this case, as in many others, recruiters from Ukraine themselves have been victims of human trafficking in the past and have once been sexually exploited. Which is not uncommon in recent years.

Murder of a bandit

Despite the inconsistencies of law enforcement agencies in different countries, sometimes working together is still productive and effective. For example, it happened in the story of the Alaska brothel in Rzeszów.

Ukrainian police were able to detain two organizers of the supply of living slaves to Europe, and the case even went to court. The slave traders received long prison terms of 8.5 and 9 years. And all because they sell into slavery, even minor children.

At the same time, the owner of the Alaska Hotel was convicted in Poland. But he was more fortunate, and he served only 2.5 years in prison, despite constant bullying and systematic beatings of young slaves.

According to the hotel management, the police were "brought out" by a rival group, led by two brothers - Ukrainians, who successfully captured the market share, which was vacated after the closure of "Alaska".

Boxer Dawid Kostecki is the owner of the facilities exposed by the police. He testified against the leadership of law enforcement agencies and special services, accusing them that without outside help, his Ukrainian competitors would not have been able to carry out such an operation.

In addition, Kostecki planned to talk about the fact of video recording of customers of competitors' brothels, but this did not happen. The detainee was found hanged in a cell of a Polish prison.

- It is almost impossible to prove such cases, even if a pimp is detained. There must be evidence that the latter took the money. In addition, the problem is the cross-border nature of such business, and carriers and recruiters who "come across" do not hand over the organizers and managers, who are usually not in Ukraine, - explains one of the authoritative and experienced in such cases, Ukrainian judge .

(schedule of the International Organization for Migration)

You can talk about the slave trade for a long time, and it is simply impossible to fit it into one material. Especially since human trafficking is not just about forced sex. In addition, there is the beggar market, labor exploitation and organ trafficking. And we will definitely tell you all this in the following materials.

28.12.2022, Taras Zozulinskyy

** The investigation was conducted using an analytical system - YouControl