The Zamboanga City multi-agency task force on anti-human trafficking has rescued 19 women believed to be victims in two separate areas.
Supt. Rogelio Alabata, Police Regional Office-9 (PRO-9) spokesperson, on Wednesday said the victims were simultaneously rescued at a hotel and a pension house in this city.
Alabata said the rescue operation was carried out simultaneously around noontime Tuesday when the Sea-Based Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force received information about the presence of the victims.
Alabata disclosed the victims, when rescued, were on transit to their respective point of destinations through the southern backdoor of the country.
He said the victims, who are all women and hired to work abroad, are from as far as Kalinga province, Pangasinan, Quezon City, and Cebu City.
He said the youngest among them is 22 and the oldest is 42 years old.
He said the victims were turned over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development for temporary custody and psycho-social assistance. (PNA)
