Police: 12 human traffickers arrested

Two-year investigation into white slavery ring results in arrests. Suspects believed to have forced hundreds of women from former USSR countries into prostitution

Avi Cohen

Published: 03.08.09, 13:13 / Israel News

The Israel Police arrested a dozen men for alleged human trafficking Sunday. The suspects are believed to have been running a white slavery ring, "trading" in women from the former Soviet Union.

The arrests were made by Tel Aviv Subdistrict Police officers. All 12 suspects are to be arraigned later this week.

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Thirteen overseas suspects, believed to be partners in the ring, have been arrested by Russian and Ukraine authorities.

The case began two years ago, when a covert investigation into the business dealings of a 35-year-old man from northern Israel was launched. The man was suspected of running a prostitution ring spanning Russia, Belarus, the Ukraine, Moldova and Uzbekistan.

The suspect allegedly formed ties with various criminal elements both in Israel and in Russia and those proceeded to allure hundreds of young women, mostly from impoverished villages in the former USSR, into the business, under the pretence that they would be employed as dancers and waitresses in Israeli clubs.

According to the case file, women who refused the "generous" offer were often assaulted and smuggled into Israel against their will, via Egypt or Turkey.

As the Israeli law and law enforcement agencies have toughened their approach to human trafficking over the years, the suspect and his associates soon moved their base of operations to Cyprus, opening clubs and terrorizing the women into working as strippers and prostitutes.

The police investigation, headed by an undercover officer, was eventually able to gather enough evidence to implicate a dozen suspects of human trafficking.

The team heading the investigation in slated to receive the President's Medal for their fight against human trafficking.

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