7 women rescued from Chinese slavery ring

MANILA, Philippines - Seven women were rescued and a Chinese man was arrested yesterday as police raided a building in Quezon City used by a slavery ring.

A team from the Manila Police District’s Station 1, intelligence and women and children’s protection units barged into a room of the building, located along E. Rodriguez Avenue and rescued the women, who ranged in age from 18 to 26.

The team – led by Station 1 commander Superintendent Ruben Ramos and intelligence chief Rizalino Ibay Jr. – earlier arrested Steven Lee, 50, based on a complaint filed by Jonna Comedor, 22; April Joy Lista, 26; and Mary Joy Brillo, 18.

Lee had been “accepting clients” to marry the women, who are then allegedly used as slaves in farms in China. The suspect, who initially claimed to be in the mining industry, has been “in the business” since 2004, Ibay said.

Police officers recovered more than 20 passports of women from different provinces.

Lee also reportedly has a network of recruiters who travel throughout the country searching for poor families who would allow their daughter to marry Chinese men in exchange for money, police said.

Comedor, a native of Masbate, told The STAR there were at least nine women when she, Brillo and Lista escaped. She said they decided to bolt after they learned that one of their friends, who was already in China, ended up as a worker on her “husband’s farm and was not even given money to send to her parents.”

Lee, who claimed to earn more than P40,000 from prospective husbands, said his business is legal and there is nothing wrong if parents are convinced to allow their daughters to marry a foreigner.

“We have a clear case” of violation of Republic Act 9208 or the human trafficking law and RA 6955 or the law against mail-order brides, Ramos said.