18 human trafficking gangs busted

The Panamanian authorities have dismantled 18 criminal networks dedicated to human trafficking. Over  200 victims of human trafficking  have  been rescued and 92 operators jailed for up to 20 years in the last 52 months

The Office of the Prosecutor against Organized Crime reports that so far in 2018 30 victims of human trafficking have been rescued.

The deputy prosecutor, Iris Lara, said that this year   25  women were rescued from women for sexual exploitation and 5 men from labor trafficking.

During the conference, organized by the Trafficking in Persons Commission, the

Lara said that human trafficking is a transnational crime, where victims are deceived with job offers and when they arrive in the destination country they realize they have to pay off the traffickers.

Most sex exploitation victims arriving in Panama are from Colombia and labor victims from Nicaragua.