Ajman police bust prostitution ring in undercover sting

Undercover officers arranged to "buy" Asian woman for two days in exchange for Dh4,500 in sting operation.

AJMAN // Fourteen members of a human trafficking and prostitution ring have been sentenced after undercover police officers arranged to "buy" a 20-year-old Asian woman in a sting operation.

The Ajman appeals court sentenced all 14, including four women, to between three months and three years in prison for their part in bringing the woman, ABL, to the UAE and forcing her into prostitution.

According to court records, the gang was caught after the woman sent a message to her relatives back home, who then informed police.

A police report stated the group brought ABL to the UAE with the promise of a good job. After meeting her at the airport, her passport was confiscated and she was taken to a villa in Ajman and made to work as a prostitute.

After being tipped off by the woman's relatives, CID officers contacted a female pimp, identified as GR, who was part of the gang. She told officers they could keep ABL for two days if they paid Dh5,000.

After negotiating a price of Dh4,500 and insisting on paying in cash instead of by wire transfer, the undercover officers arranged to meet the pimp's driver to hand over the money.

The driver, identified as Babu, was arrested and led police to the villa where ABL and several other women were being held.

All 14 members of the gang will be deported after serving their sentences.