A 27-year-old woman was sentenced on Friday, April 16 to 15 years direct imprisonment for trafficking a 14-year-old girl from George in the Western Cape. The Cape Town regional court handed the woman the sentence for her involvement in human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
As reported by Times Live, Hawks spokesperson Zinzi Hani said Verona Kennedy “recruited” the then 14-year-old victim, who was later kidnapped and traded to a foreign national, in 2013.
“During 2013 the victim, who was living in George during the time of her kidnapping, was recruited by Kennedy and traded to a foreign national named Christopher Chichoke,” said Hani. The victim also testified during Kennedy’s trial.
It is alleged that Chichoke gave the young girl drugs and forced her to work as a sex worker for him.
However, one night the victim managed to escape and ran to the nearest police station where she registered a criminal case, Algoa Fm reports. Both accused were arrested in 2015 and later released on bail, but Chichoke then fled the country and is now a wanted person.
Kennedy was re-arrested in 2018 and has been in custody since.
Picture: Cape Town Etc gallery