.jpg)
A human trafficking case has been linked to a worker at two southwest restaurants after Saskatchewan RCMP’s Swift Current Trafficking Response Team began investigating earlier this year.
Through investigation, police determined that an adult female, originally from Bangladesh, was staying in Canada on a visitor’s permit when she responded to a job advertisement on a popular job bank, for work at a restaurant.
The woman was provided with a working permit after relocating to Saskatchewan from out of province.
For numerous months, the woman was forced to work seven days a week, for 10 to 12 hours a day.
During this time, the woman was made to work at restaurants in Gull Lake, Elrose, and Tisdale.
In the few hours she wasn’t working, she was forced to stay in a dimly lit, heavily water-damaged, concrete, unfinished basement.
Her employers threatened her by saying her work permit would be taken away or they would call the police on her if she did not comply with her restrictions, living situation, and work schedule.
On June 29, Saskatchewan RCMP’s STRT arrested two adult males in Tisdale and a third adult male in Elrose on July 5 as a result of an investigation and consultation with Crown Prosecution.
41-year-old Mohammad Masum from Tisdale and 52-year-old Sohel Haider from Elrose are each charged with one count, trafficking a person.
Masum is also charged with three counts of sexual assault. The third male was released without charge.
Haider and Masum are both scheduled to appear in Rosetown Provincial Court on July 13.
The victim has been provided with support such as informing her of protections available to her under Saskatchewan’s Protection from Human Trafficking Act.
Supt. Glenn Church, officer in charge of Saskatchewan RCMP’s Saskatchewan Enforcement Response Team, stated in a press release that human trafficking can take on many different forms.
“This investigation illustrates human trafficking can take many forms, including forced labour,”he explained. “This isn’t just a big city issue, human trafficking is present in communities both big and small, including in Saskatchewan. It’s important that residents recognize the signs of trafficking and report these occurrences to police immediately.
“We have dedicated resources like STRT working to dismantle trafficking rings, and helping to connect victims with the assistance and resources they need.”
Investigators believe there may be more victims of this human trafficking operation and the investigation is ongoing.
If you have information about this or any other incident of human trafficking, or if you or someone you know may be a victim of it, call police immediately.
You can also contact the confidential, 24/7 Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-833-900-1010, which offers services in more than 200 languages.
Information can also be submitted anonymously by contacting Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477) or www.saskcrimestoppers.com.
Information on recognizing human trafficking can be found here.