A network that exploits prostitutes from Thailand nationwide is exposed in a major raid. The main culprit is a 61-year-old Thai woman. She has nothing in common with a blatant pimp type. Now the verdict has been announced.
Hanau (dpa) - They were exploited, put under pressure as lawless sex workers and those who did not trace had to suffer hunger as punishment.
The prostitutes from the Far East hoped for a better life in Germany and a lot of money doing business with lust. But they had a hard life in the establishments. On Wednesday, the verdicts were pronounced in a long-term trial against five members of a nationwide brothel ring with transsexuals and women from Thailand.
The Hanau Regional Court imposed eight years and nine months' imprisonment on Wednesday for the main defendant, a 61-year-old woman from Thailand. Her partner, a 61-year-old German, was sentenced to four years and six months. Three other defendants were given suspended sentences of between three and two years. The confessions mitigated everyone.
The process that started in summer 2019 included trafficking, smuggling, exploitation of prostitutes, pimping, forced prostitution and tax evasion. The General Prosecutor General's Office in Frankfurt accused the accused of having in particular transsexuals from Thailand smuggled tourist visas into Germany for years. The aim was to exploit her as a prostitute. The transsexuals were born as men and live as women. So-called ladyboys are known in Asia, for example, some of them work in the red light milieu.
Four transsexuals participated as co-plaintiffs in the trial. One of the victims had reported that she was led with a hard hand and had to be available for sex around the clock at times. She was active in several federal states. The Hanau trial was only about occurrences in Maintal (Hesse) and Siegen (NRW). Another co-plaintiff described her fear of consequences by saying, "If I run away, only my bones will come back."
The defendants in the Hanau trial have nothing to do with the image that is commonly associated with dangerous and violent pimps. Especially the head of the network, the 61 year old Thai woman, looked like an inconspicuous, older lady. But together with her helpers, she knew how to do her tough business at the prostitutes' expense.
The prostitutes were recruited in Thailand via the Internet, as the presiding judge Andreas Weiß described in the judgment. They were aware that they would buy in Germany. But the working conditions were by no means clear. After their arrival in Germany, they first had to process travel, advertising and visa costs in the amount of 15,000 to 20,000 euros. According to the court, this took about three to six months. At that time, they were completely penniless. They also had to give up half of their wages afterwards - for further expenses in the brothels. Everyday things like hygiene items had to be bought there at overpriced prices. The fact that they were allowed to move freely and were allowed to leave the brothel alone was rather the exception.
The women and transsexuals were kept in massive economic dependence, as White said. Some had taken their passports to prevent them from traveling home. In the brothels they had no say in which suitors they had to be compliant with. They sometimes had to have sex without condoms.
If, for example, the prostitutes started in the brothel in Siegen with the main accused and her partner, they were then passed around in other establishments in Germany. So the customers should be offered variety. Some therefore came to the Hessian Main Valley, where two sisters ran the "Sun-Thai". The two sisters, formerly active in the business, were sentenced to three years in prison. A housekeeper from Siegen, who also acted as a driver, got off the most lightly. She got two years probation.
The network was exposed to a major raid. On April 18, 2018, more than 1,500 federal police officers searched a total of 62 brothels, apartments and offices in twelve federal states. The focus was on NRW (17 properties), Hesse (10), Lower Saxony (9) and Baden-Württemberg (9). It was the largest search campaign ever in the history of the federal police.
Katrin Rudelt from the General Prosecutor's Office in Frankfurt was satisfied with the judgments of the court. The board largely followed the view of the indictment and imposed similar high penalties as required. The condemned can appeal against the judgment. The defendants of the main defendants and their partner said they are considering an appeal to the Federal Court of Justice. In addition to the prison terms, the main accused and their partner must also reimburse any money earned. According to the judgment, more than 1.1 million euros will be collected. More than 50,000 euros are due from the two sisters from Maintal.