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ABERDEEN NEWS - A rumour was circulating in Aberdeen last week that a man arrested by the police locally for child trafficking had escaped from custody, and was on the loose in the Aberdeen area.
Fortunately, this rumour appears to be false, although the information being spread around has enough elements of truth to have sparked the initial concern.
The correct facts, according to a reliable source known to the Advertiser, are as follows:
A taxi, registered in Cape Town, was stopped by the Traffic Department at a routine checkpoint on the N9, between Aberdeen and Graaff-Reinet, on Tuesday 10 December. One man, two women and a number of children, all from Zimbabwe, were travelling in the taxi, apparently on their way to spend Christmas in Cape Town with family and friends.
At the checkpoint, it was found that the driver did not have a driving licence, and he was issued with a fine. As most of the passengers had no documentation to be in South Africa, the taxi was escorted to the Traffic Department offices, and the SAPS were called.
The adult passengers without documents were arrested as illegal immigrants. At this point, the taxi driver ran away. He had not been arrested.
The children were all taken to a place of safety in Graaff-Reinet, under the care of representatives from the Department of Social Development. The Hawks were notified, and assisted with the case initially, but at this stage there is no case of human trafficking.
Some of the parents arrived in Aberdeen from Cape Town to fetch their children, but have not been allowed to take them whilst the investigation is ongoing.
Following a court order last week, the children were moved to a place of safety in Port Elizabeth.
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