Three suspects belonging to a human and sex trafficking syndicate were sentenced by the Western Cape High Court after pleading guilty to 128 charges.
An investigation had revealed that they were running brothels in the Milnerton, Table View, Big Bay, and Belville areas of the Western Cape.
The suspects, Shantel Reyneke-Bridger (47), Juan Francois Warren (40) and Robin Reyneke (28) were sentenced on Wednesday, March 6 2019.
Charges included the kidnapping of a minor, trafficking of persons for sexual purposes, debt bondage, assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm, and living on the proceeds of prostitution and extortion, which amounted to more than R3-million.
Information revealed that the group recruited young females, including minors, to work in brothels by grooming them before sexually exploiting them.
Victims were kept in the brothels and assaulted on a regular basis and were forced to engaged in criminal activities, including shoplifting, extortion, and housebreaking.
The victims were also manipulated with threats of grievous bodily harm being done to their friends and family.
Several clients who made use of the brothel’s services were extorted between 2012 and 2015, and paid the group well to ensure their sexual encounters would not be posted on social media.
Cases against the other seven remaining suspects are ongoing at the Cape Town High Court – these include Camilla Amelia de Waal Roussouw, Fareez Allie, Achmat Toffa, Babalwa Nozigqwaba, Norman Edwin Bridger, Michael D’Oliveira, and Natasha Chang.
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