Malta-linked sex trafficking gang smashed

The Colombian and Albanian authorities have arrested at least 17 people suspected of involvement in an international sex trafficking ring which saw Colombian women brought to Malta and other European countries for sexual exploitation.

At least 10 people in Colombia, including ‘Lukas’, the alias of the group’s alleged ringleader, and seven in Albania were arrested on Friday in simultaneous raids across both countries in a joint operation coordinated by Europol.

The trafficking gang, known as ‘Raphax’, is believed to have recruited vulnerable women from cities across Colombia using social media and then transported them to European countries for sexual exploitation.

Europol said the victims were sexually exploited in “several European countries, including Albania and Croatia”, with the director general of the Colombian police also naming Malta, Montenegro and Kosovo as destination countries. Europol did not list any victims identified in Malta during the operation.

Victims lured on social media

Once in Europe, the women were “subjected to conditions similar to slavery” while trying to repay the traffickers the €5,000 they were charged for travel and accommodation, which became “unpayable” when their earnings were withheld, according to Colombian media reports.

‘Lukas’, a man the Colombian media said was wanted by the Maltese and Albanian authorities, is alleged to have led the recruitment activities of the group, which targeted women “through deception” on social media.

A Colombian police spokesperson told the local media the group had tricked women by offering them jobs in Europe, where they “instrumentalised and exploited” the victims.

“They simply dedicated themselves to exploiting and using them in different actions that go against the integrity of people,” the spokesperson said, according to Colombian media outlet El Colombiano.

Footage of the raids shared online by Colombia’s interior ministry shows men and women being escorted out of properties in handcuffs and equipment, documents and handguns being seized by large squads of police officers.

‘Highly organised’

Europol described the group as “highly organised... with members assigned to specific roles ranging from recruitment and transport to the direct control and exploitation of victims”.

The victims were left without any control over their lives, with the gang advertising sexual services on adult websites and call centre operatives dealing with negotiations on pricing and services.

“So-called ‘agencies’ oversaw every detail, from recruitment to money collection, often subjecting victims to psychological and physical violence, as well as threats against family members in Colombia,” the law enforcement agency said.

It noted the traffickers used “associates” to act on its behalf in transit and destination countries.

“At least half of the illicit proceeds were channelled to the main organiser, who relied on sophisticated money laundering methods to whitewash the criminal profits.”

The gang’s high mobility had complicated national investigations, making international cooperation “essential” in the arrests, it explained.

Nine properties in Colombia and seven in Albania were targeted in the raids, with 54 South American victims identified across Albania, Croatia and Colombia, Europol said, noting that further seizures of evidence and equipment were ongoing.

The Albanian State Police (Policia e Shtetit), the Colombian National Police (Policía Nacional de Colombia) and the Croatian Police (Hrvatska Policija) took part in the operation, which was supported by Eurojust, the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation.

Headquartered in The Hague, Europol (European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation) is tasked with combating international and organised crime, cybercrime and terrorism.

Malta has been the scene of sexual exploitation of Colombian women before.

Last year, nine people, mostly Maltese, were charged with involvement in a racket that saw Latin American women trafficked to Malta for prostitution.

Colombian women testifying in the case said they had been forced to see over 2,000 clients within three months and a 24-year-old Venezuelan woman said she had worked as a prostitute for “as long as my body could take it”.

Earlier last year, an Italian man living in Malta was charged with trafficking three Colombian nationals for sexual exploitation, with one of the victims recounting how she had received threats against her life and her family in Colombia.

Questions were sent to the police and Europol.