The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) have foiled a human trafficking ring that recruited minors who were housed at a lodge in Harare before being sent to be married off in China.
Three people including a Chinese national appeared before a Harare magistrates yesterday for contravening the Trafficking in Persons Act.
Chen Dehu (39) a Chinese national, Joseph Rabson (44) and Shame Mafido (57) appeared before magistrate Marehwanazvo Gofa who remanded them to today for bail ruling.
Dehu who is already married to Rabson child came in the country on October 3 this year for the sole purpose of recruiting victims so that he would traffick them to China for child marriages.
It is alleged that Dehu acting in connivance with Rabson and Mafido recruited the three victims after deceiving them that there were good educational sponsorship opportunities, good work conditions yet they wanted to marry them off to China.
The state alleges that Rabson and Mafido are close relatives to victims hence exercised parental authority over the victims which two of them are 17 year old minors.
It is alleged that on 18 October 2023, accused persons facilitated the transportation of the three victims from Karoi to Harare by road and booked a room for them at 27 Hillview Lodge, Harare where they stayed for four days awaiting for the processing of travel documents.
The state alleges that since the required age of marriage in China is 20 years, the accused persons fraudulently acquired new birth certificates and national identity document for the two victims of which two are minors after supplying false information on dates of birth to depict the victims as adults.
The accused persons facilitated the acquiring of a new Zimbabwean passport of the third victim by paying the amount required to achieve total control.
The detectives from CID Counter Terrorism Unit arrested the three accused persons at Hillview Lodge number 27 Bishop Gaul Avenue Belvedere, Harare after receiving a tip-off that there were minors harboured at the lodge.