Detectives based in Athi River, Machakos county have rescued eighteen victims of human trafficking who were being held in a house in the area.
According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI), the victims were en route to a destination in the Gulf where they were allegedly to be sold as slaves.
“In a raid conducted by sleuths from the Transnational Organized Crimes Unit last evening, the 18 were about to be shipped out of the country when the hawk-eyed detectives arrived and rescued them, following Intelligence leads,” DCI said.
Three suspects Abdullahi Hussein Mohamed, 32, Hassan Ibrahim Godana, 35 and Chari Dulacha, 40 were arrested during the late evening raid.
The rescue of the victims and subsequent arrest of the suspects comes in the wake of increased cases of mistreatment of migrant workers in the gulf.
The DCI urged jobseekers to be wary of unscrupulous employment agents who are not recognised by the government but end up sneaking out immigrants without proper documentation.
The three accused are currently in custody at Muthaiga Police station being processed for arraignment.
Meanwhile, the rescued victims are in protective custody as detectives continue with their documentation.