4 minors rescued from human traffickers in Navotas

Navotas authorities rescued four minors who were going to be sold for sex by human traffickers, Marisol Abdurahman reported Tuesday on 24 Oras.

The 4 girls went missing for 24 hours after telling their parents about a dance practice at school.

The minors were thought to have been kidnapped after a witness reported seeing the girls getting into a van.

“Syempre, nataranta kami. Saan napunta anak ko? 24 Oras nang wala ang anak ko eh, kung anong mangyari dun. Di na nga ako makapagtrabaho,” said the father of a victim.

The unidentified van was later revealed to have been a Philippine National Police-Women and Children Protection Center (WCPC) vehicle that was used in a rescue operation for the four girls who were being sold for sex on Monday.

The Navotas Police later discovered that the rescued victims were the same missing minors.

“Naikutan ng ating personnel yung operation and based dun sa report nga ho na na-receive natin, may legitimate operation ang ating WCPC dito sa Navotas. Nakarating din po text sa amin na andun sila nago-operate,” said Navotas Police Chief Colonel Mario Cortes.

The victims were being given medical examinations and other necessary assessments while charges would be filed against a suspect who was arrested during the rescue operation.

Meanwhile, the WCPC said that the number of “trafficking in person” cases that involved minors being sold for sex had been increasing.

“Bumalik na naman po itong mga gantong traditional [cases], so may mga nare-receive kaming mga gantong activity, especially dito sa Metro Manila. Medyo malaki statistics natin ngayon,” said WCPC Chief Colonel Portia Manalad. — Jiselle Casucian/DVM, GMA Integrated News