20 Years for Traffickers

7 Chinese: Accused's Daughter Says Bosses Got Off Scot-Free

- Molefe Seeletsa

Even Chinese nationals were handed lengthy prison sentences yesterday for running a human trafficking and child labour operation.

The High Court in Johannesburg delivered judgment against Kevin Tsao Shu-Uei, Chen Hui, Qin Li, Jiaqing Zhou, Ma Biao, Dai Junying and Zhang Zhilian.

They were convicted of 160 charges, including human trafficking, kidnapping, contraventions of immigration laws and the exploitation of workers in February.

The sentencing proceedings faced delays, having been postponed at least twice in March and again in April.

The case dates back to November 2019, when police and labour officials raided a factory called Beautiful City in Village Deep, Johannesburg.

Inside, 91 Malawian nationals were discovered working under exploitative conditions at the illegal enterprise, which produced cotton fibre sheets. Among them were 37 children.

Six of the accused remained behind bars during the long-running trial, while Dai was released due to medical reasons.