(20 May) Using Facebook website and Line application from her smartphone to send a message seeking help, a 17 year old Thai girl escaped from her fate as a sex slave in South Korea.
The Crime Suppression Division said its team has successfully rescued Ms. A. (not her real name) 17, a Roi Et native and victim of human trafficking in South Korea. The victim was able to contact herfriends via Facebook and LINE to inform them of her situation and to contact the police.
The officers then coordinated with the Thai embassy in Seoul and local police raided the restaurant and massage parlor called “Ayutthaya” in Seoul. Ms.A, who was sent back to Thailand safely on 18 May.
Ms. A said that before her hellish experience in Seoul, she used to work at a Company in Pattaya and the suspects, both Thai and Korean, became close to her there, asking her about her life.
According to Ms. A., they suggested she go work at the massage parlor in South Korea, where she can earn more than 100,000 baht per month. They also showed her photographs of the office, which seemed by luxuriously decorated. Having come from a poor family, Ms. A. told our correspondent, she jumped at the chance on 5 May.
I have to pay for tuition of my siblings, Ms. A. explained.
The victim said that when she arrived the culprits confiscated her passport and took her to the massage parlour. She was confined inside and was forced to perform sexual acts for up to 20 hours per day.She could not leave the establishment and was subject to torture. Luckily, the culprits did not confiscate her smartphone, hence her chance of seeking help from the outside world.
The Crime Suppression Division′s Anti-Human Trafficking officers stated that they received reports from Ms.A’s friend and contacted the Thai Embassy in South Korea to alert the local police. The victim was able to identify the location and other important evidence, and police were able to raid the restaurant and rescue her before sending her safely back to Thailand.
The suspects were said to include both Thai and South Korean nationals, who have been arrested. The investigation is ongoing.
