Two Tanzanians in court for trafficking persons with disabilities to Nairobi streets

By , K24 Digital
On Mon, 30 Aug, 2021 16:31 | < 1 min read
Two Tanzania nationals Kuyi Paulo and Sita Yohana before Milimani Law Courts charged with trafficking in persons. PHOTO/NANCY Gitonga

Two Tanzania nationals have been charged with trafficking persons with disabilities to Nairobi with an aim of exploiting them through begging.

The suspects Kuyi Paulo and Sita Yohana were accused of flaunting children's rights and exploiting them by subjecting them to inhuman treatment by dumping them by the roadside in the city estate for purposes of begging.

Police and children officers from Shauri Moyo sub-county pounced on the accused as they were dropping a 14-year-old physically challenged child they trafficked from Tanzania.

The prosecution said the two accused have been benefiting themselves illegally through alms received by the victims for the last two years.

It urged Milimani senior Principal Magistrate Zainab Abdul to impose stringent bail terms while releasing them on bond.

The duo faces three counts of trafficking people, economic exploitation and being in Kenya illegally.

"That on diverse dates between the year 2019 and August 20, 2021, jointly with others not before court transported and harboured E.T. a Disabled child aged 14 years from Tanzania to Shauri Moyo in Kenya for the purpose of exploitation in abuse of a position of vulnerability," reads the charged sheet.

In the second count, the two are accused that on the same dates at Shauri Moyo area in Kamukunji sub-county within Nairobi county willfully negligently engaged the 14-year-old in begging of as which interfered with his education and physical health.

They were further charged that on August 26, 2021, at South B in Makadara, Nairobi county the two were found in Kenya unlawfully and did not have a valid pass in contravention of the Kenya Citizenship and immigration.

The magistrate ordered each of the accused to deposit a cash bail of Ksh 300,000 with a Kenyan surety to sign their release.