Human Trafficking Trial

TDT | Manama

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The First High Criminal Court has started hearing a human trafficking case against a woman in her forties accused of exploiting a 22-year-old Asian woman.

Prosecutors allege she recruited and harboured the victim, forcing her into prostitution and taking her earnings.

The defendant denied trafficking charges but admitted to benefiting financially from the victim’s activities.

The victim told the court she came to Bahrain after a Facebook job offer for nightclub work, but was later coerced into prostitution to repay a fake debt and moved between locations where she was detained and exploited.

An Anti-Human Trafficking officer said investigations indicated the victim was effectively “purchased” under an oral agreement, with the defendant allegedly admitting she received and profited from her exploitation.

The court has adjourned the case until April 27, 2026, to appoint a defence lawyer.