A woman was arrested on June 19th by Phnom Penh police officers and AIM SWAT on suspicion of trafficking a young brother and sister with disabilities from Kampong Cham province to Thailand.
The suspect had tricked the children’s mother into letting them go with her, promising to provide them with good jobs at the Thai border where they would be safe and well looked after. Instead, the children, who were targeted for their disabilities to solicit pity from tourists, were taken to the streets of Pattaya in Thailand where they were forced to beg and suffered both physical and emotional abuse. Thai police later rescued the siblings in a street sweep and transferred the kids to a shelter at the Thai/Cambodian border.
When their mother learned what had happened, she immediately filed a complaint and officers from both the Phnom Penh police and AIM SWAT traveled to Thailand for the kids. After interviews, they were able to identify the woman and launched a surveillance operation to locate and arrest her.
While the suspect awaits trial from prison, the brother and sister are now being cared for at partner after-care shelters and will receive representation from our SWAT legal team in upcoming court proceedings.