Sex Trafficker Convicted for Sexually Exploiting Two Minors in the Dominican Republic

Read The Original Article Here | By: IJM

After 20 months of trial, a Dominican court found a woman guilty of trafficking and sexually exploiting two teenagers and sentenced her to 15 years.

Isha* and Lucy* were 16 and 17 years old when they were freed in December of 2020 in a rescue operation led by Dominican authorities. IJM´s team came alongside local anti-trafficking police (ATD) and a prosecutor to intercept Isha and Lucy before they could be transported elsewhere and sold again for sex.

The investigation revealed that this woman held the victims captive in her home. Our team supported authorities to arrest her and secure pre-trial detention without bail, keeping the danger off the streets. Both survivors then courageously testified against her in a Gesell Chamber, a safe room where children can share about what happened to them but do not have to do so in front of their aggressor.

Santiago, a town in the northern part of the country where this conviction occurred, “is an area of the jurisdiction where we have had many challenges and had seen few convictions. This is the third ever trafficking sentence in Santiago and the fact that the court is issuing a strong sentence represents a great achievement for our work, but most importantly for the community, especially the children who can see they will be protected,” explained Sonia Hernandez, IJM Dominican Republic´s Associate Director of Public Justice System Strengthening.

Since 2013, IJM has invested in sustainable capacity building with the Dominican Public Ministry, coming alongside of police, judges, prosecutors, and other service providers through critical trainings.

“It is reassuring to see that the work we have been doing with the authorities of the public justice system is giving results,” Sonia added. “Each trial represents a critical moment to obtain justice for the survivor and to send a message to the community that these criminals will be held accountable. Each conviction represents a key milestone in a survivor´s journey to restoration because the State heard them, believed them, and took action to protect them.”

*A pseudonym.