8 Pakistanis jailed for forcing teenage girls into prostitution

DUBAI: Eight Pakistanis have been sentenced to five years in prison after being convicted of trafficking three Pakistani teenagers to Dubai and forcing them into prostitution.

On Sunday, Dubai Court of First Instance convicted them of charges of human trafficking, sexual exploitation and running a prostitution den. The eight Pakistani defendants will be deported after serving their jail time and paying $5,400 fine each. Dubai Criminal Court heard how the defendants, from Pakistan, doctored the passports of the 17-year-old girls to avoid customs spotting how young they were. The three girls, all aged 17, met the 37-year-old saleswoman in Pakistan who convinced them to travel to Dubai in December 2017, according to police record. Police charged the seven men and one woman after raiding a brothel in the Al Baraha area of Dubai in December 2017. Following the raid of the brothel, police shutdown the apartment and confiscated cash, mobile phones and other items. According to record, teenage Pakistani girls admitted that they had been contacted by the gang in Pakistan and offered a job in Dubai. “After accepting job offer, the gang forged the documents and helped them to get the passport so we could visit,” they revealed.