HCM City police arrest duo for trafficking woman

HCM CITY, Vietnam - The HCM City police yesterday arrested a man and a woman for allegedly trafficking women abroad to work as prostitutes.

Truong Nguyen, a 28-year-old resident of HCM City's Binh Chanh District, and Nguyen Thi Mai Trang, 29, are alleged to have trafficked an 18-year-old woman from the city's Tan Phu District to Singapore in exchange for US$200.

Trang, the owner of Tuyet Cafe on Quach Vu Street in the city's Tan Phu District, who is pregnant, was released on bail, the police said.

The victim, whom the police named as just N.T.G.P., was allegedly lured to Singapore with an offer of a well-paid job as a waitress and then taken to Malaysia to work as a prostitute.

There, she was ordered to entertain six men daily. She did not get any money but if she refused to entertain clients, she was denied food. Later, her captors threatened to traffic her to third countries if her family did not pay a ransom.

Her family finally paid $2,000 to a Malaysian man for releasing her daughter and later reported the incident to the HCM City police.

Police said this is one of just many incidents of trafficking of local women to Malaysia for prostitution by foreigners, adding investigations are continuing.