Security companies were alerted to noises at the house
Koena Mashale
The house in Parkmore, Sandton, where a group of Ethiopian men was found locked inside in a case of suspected human trafficking.
Image: Veli Nhlapo
Hungry, scared, naked and injured. This was the condition 44 young Ethiopian men were found in when police discovered them locked inside a Sandton house on Thursday morning.
The dramatic rescue of the men, which unfolded just after 2am, took neighbours in the gated community of Parkmore by surprise when police officers and security guards surrounded the property.
The house belongs to the son of a prominent fashion designer who said it was rented out to an Ethiopian man he had never met.
One of the security guards at the scene described what he saw as resembling a prison.
They looked extremely malnourished, so we felt really bad for them. While police inspected the scene, we thought to buy them some bread and Coke — and the way they ate, it was as if they had been starved for months
Guard
“They looked extremely malnourished, so we felt really bad for them. While police inspected the scene, we thought to buy them some bread and Coke — and the way they ate, it was as if they had been starved for months,” said the guard.
“It was like a prison — the way we found them was not pleasant. Most of them looked like children between 13 and 14, there was no one older than 25 in that group. They had cuts on their arms as if they were fighting their way through to just escape.”
Gauteng police spokesperson Capt Tinstwalo Sibeko said they believe the men were trafficked to South Africa by people who “may demand a fee of R30,000 to R50,000 per person for their release”.
She said police had received a report at about 2am reporting suspicious noises coming from a house on 10th Street in Parkmore.
There they found 44 young Ethiopian men locked in different rooms.
“There were 17 in the first room and 27 in another room,” Sibeko said. “One of the individuals, 22-year-old Aklilu Lama, was able to communicate in broken English and said they were transported from Ethiopia to South Africa and taken to these premises.
“The conditions at the premises were dire, with limited food provided every 24 hours and no access to sunlight.
“There was inadequate clothing with individuals wearing blankets and shorts.”
A neighbour, who asked not to be identified, , said when he heard the noise coming from next door, he had mistaken it for a robbery.
“I didn’t want to go and check what was going on. I was scared that something would happen to me because the noise coming from the place sounded like someone was actually breaking a door or a window. So I didn’t want to get involved.”
He said he then went to sleep but was “was shocked when I woke up and found out that instead of people trying to break into the home, they were actually trying to break out”.
The man said the house had been vacant for some time.
South Africa [is] a human trafficking hotspot and these victims are being sold a dream of luxury and opportunity. It also prompts many questions: how many more are out there? How many more houses? Who is this demand and supply for? What is the market looking like now?
Hillary Leon from Act Africa, human trafficking expert
“I have never seen anyone coming in and out of the property. I honestly thought it was abandoned at one point because there was no movement at all,” he said.
The security guard also said guards constantly patrolled the area and never saw anything suspicious.
He echoed Johannes’s sentiments that the house seemed to be abandoned.
“It’s a complete shock that 44 people are coming out of that house because now it’s a question of ‘how did we miss it?’” he said.
The fashion designer, who asked to remain anonymous, said he was “completely shocked” and confused when he heard of the events from his son, who lives in Cape Town.
“I had no idea there were people in that house, let alone that 44 Ethiopians were kidnapped,” he said.
“Everything was done over the phone, and my son never met this [estate] agent face to face. Last I heard, the person who was renting the property was an Ethiopian man.”
Human trafficking expert Hillary Leon from Act Africa said the number of Ethiopian nationals being trafficked to South Africa was concerning. There had been three incidents in the past six months in which large numbers of them had been found in similar circumstances to the group found in Parkmore, she said.
“It seems to be a growing trend that honestly needs to be looked at widely. “South Africa [is] a human trafficking hotspot and these victims are being sold a dream of luxury and opportunity.
“It also prompts many questions: how many more are out there? How many more houses? Who is this demand and supply for? What is the market looking like now?”