13 Model Agencies on trial for trafficking in people
The heads of 13 model agencies in Belarus have appeared in court on charges of trafficking in people. According to the prosecutors, the leaders of those agencies were part of an international criminal syndicate that lured and sold to sexual slavery almost 600 girls from Belarus.
The women would usually end up in France, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. The gang operated since 2000, according to Siarhej Kaltun, deputy chief of drug enforcement department at the Belarus Interior Ministry.
“Those criminals only disguised their businesses as model agencies, but they had nothing to with it. Naturally, they damaged the image of the Belarusian model business in general.
However, the recent victories of Kacja Damankova and Vika Mahota help restore confidence to the model business,” said Siarhej Nahorny, the director of the famous model agency in Minsk.
The women would usually end up in France, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. The gang operated since 2000, according to Siarhej Kaltun, deputy chief of drug enforcement department at the Belarus Interior Ministry.
“Those criminals only disguised their businesses as model agencies, but they had nothing to with it. Naturally, they damaged the image of the Belarusian model business in general.
However, the recent victories of Kacja Damankova and Vika Mahota help restore confidence to the model business,” said Siarhej Nahorny, the director of the famous model agency in Minsk.
