28 victims of human traffickers forced to beg on streets

A criminal group dedicated to human trafficking in the form of labor exploitation was dismantled, with the capture of six of its members during raids by the National Police and the Public Ministry in “Operation Omega” on Tuesday, January  17.

Among those captured are four citizens of Venezuelan nationality, a Brazilian and a Canadian, who are being linked to the investigations carried out by the Specialized Superior Prosecutor’s Office Against Organized Crime.

Operation Omega carried out six search procedures in sectors of the province of Panama, such as Paitilla, Vía Argentina, Calle 50, and 12 de Octubre, and in the province of Coclé, in the Farallón sector.

Among the victims, there are 21 adults and 7 minors, of Venezuelan, Costa Rican, and Panamanian nationalities.

In the proceedings, cash, technological equipment, and garments were seized as part of the merchandise that the victims were forced to sell, and also some 43 exotic birds that were found in captivity in one of the raided buildings in the Paitilla sector.

The authorities reported that the criminal group recruited national and foreign people, forcing them to sell products at traffic lights, in forced begging, under the deception of a certain “religious culture.”