Morocco Arrests Suspect in Alleged Human Trafficking Ring Targeting Young Women

In an article titled by the media Article19 "Pimping - Arrest in Ouazzane of a man engaged in the "sale" of young girls to rich Gulf countries" and talking about more than 800 victims, 74 of whom have already been identified, we can read the following shocking statements: "The number of identified victims exceeds 74, they were married in the context of the so-called enjoyment marriage and the "slave market" while the number of victims is estimated at 800, a figure likely to increase given that this criminal activity has lasted more than 4 years". Article19 says it is based on an article from Hespress.

The arrested individual would be originally from Salé, born in 1959, but he frequently went to Ouazzane to look for underage girls (girls living in precarious situations, the media specifies) and offered his mediation in "fake document" marriages in exchange for large sums of money. The "enjoyment husbands" concerned are rich people from the Gulf countries.

Article19 also writes: "the police seized mobile phones and discovered hundreds of photographs of girls from different cities, as well as WhatsApp messages and dozens of signed statements from the victims indicating that they would pay for their marriage sums of money ranging from 40,000 to 60,000 dirhams".

It should be noted that this individual has a long criminal record, his past involving fraud, scams and pimping, and that he was active not only in Ouazzane but also in Casablanca, Rabat, Khénifra, Tétouan, Fez... He also had a network of intermediaries to contact the young girls.

This man was arrested last Wednesday and placed in custody. The investigation continues, among other things, to identify and arrest any accomplices.