While an Eastern Cape deputy school principal facing charges linked to an alleged brothel in East London contested her denial of bail in the Makhanda high court, the provincial Hawks raided her lodge. The reasons for the refusal would be revealed at a later stage, Molony said. The 52-year-old woman faces eight counts of human trafficking.
She was arrested by the Hawks’ East London serious organised crime investigation unit in October while she was teaching at a school in Cove Ridge, outside the city. The teacher is accused of recruiting young women from the former Transkei region, namely Qumbu, Mthatha and Ngqeleni. Provincial Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana said the investigation began in September 2023, when the victims were transported from different areas to East London and allegedly coerced into prostitution at the accused’s residence in Quigney.
“From the money each girl made during the night, the accused [allegedly] collects R250 every morning. This amount has gone up to R300 currently,” according to court papers. “If a girl did not make enough money to pay the accused, she would evict that girl without mercy.
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“The accused made these girls always depend on her, as keeping up with the rent demands was never easy to meet.” According to court papers, the deputy principal is accused of trafficking girls aged between 16 and 23 by “unlawfully and intentionally” recruiting, transporting and transferring them within or across the borders of the SA, by means of a threat or other forms of coercion. She is further accused of keeping a brothel in contravention of Section 2 of the Sexual Offences Act.
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