THE Hawks' Serious Organised Crime Investigation team in Kimberley, Northern Cape have arrested two suspects linked to a suspected human trafficking case.
This after a man (46) and woman (41), both Zimbabwean nationals, were seen boarding a bus in Midrand with 14 undocumented kids on Tuesday, 5 December.
It has since been revealed that the kids, eight boys and six girls, are aged between six and 14.
Hawks spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Tebogo Thebe said the police were alerted to the incident by a vigilant passenger on a bus from Midrand in Joburg en-route to Cape Town.
"The bus made a stopover in Kimberley. The passenger called an off-duty police officer who in turn alerted the multi-disciplinary team. The suspects claimed to be taking the kids to their parents in Cape Town, information the police could not verify, leading to the arrest," he said.
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According to Thebe, upon inspection the kids looked dirty without any additional clothes or bags and also looked hungry.
It was then when the provincial Trafficking in Persons Rapid Response Team, led by the Department of Social Development, was contacted to help place the kids at a place of safety and provide them with food.
Northern Cape Hawks head Major-General Steven Mabuela appreciated the information from the vigilant caller and the efforts of the off-duty police officer, Sergeant Phumla Mpolokeng which led to the police’s timely intervention.
This is the second suspected human trafficking bust to be intercepted by authorities. The first was on Sunday, 3 December when 42 buses carrying passengers from Zimbabwe were turned away at the Beitbridge border.
About 443 unaccompanied children under the age of eight were among the passengers, according to Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi.
