Trafficking suspect faces charges

Charges of qualified trafficking were filed yesterday against the woman accused of recruiting eight women for prostitution in Moalboal town, southern Cebu.

Jenvie Cabaluna was presented before the Cebu Provincial Prosecutors’ Office for the inquest proceedings and she chose not to undergo preliminary investigation which could have given her a chance to submit evidence for her defense.

Asst. Provincial Prosecutor Mildred Antipuesto recommended the filing of charges for qualified trafficking against Cabaluna before the Regional Trial Court in Barili which has jurisdiction over cases that took place in Moalboal.

The offense is non-bailable which caused concern for Cabaluna.

“I have no idea about human trafficking. I only heard about it through the media,” she said in Cebuano.

She claimed that someone invited her and the victims to act as tour guides for a whale shark watching activity in Oslob town.

“I was set up. I’m in a difficult situation simply because of obeying a request,” she said.

Cabaluna said she will prove her innocence in court.

Cabaluna used to work as a waitress and received P27,000 from a poseur customer whom he didn’t know was a policeman.

She was arrested by operatives of the Regional Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force and Regional Intelligence Division last Sunday.

Social worker Edna Regudo said the eight trafficking victims, most of whom were single mothers, were led to believe by Cabaluna that they were attending a birthday party at a beach in Moalboal town and thus needed to wear swimsuits.

She said they were unaware that Cabaluna was pimping them to a foreigner, a decoy and were shocked when they were arrested by policemen.

Regudo said one of the victims told her they would receive P2,000.

They also didn’t know each other, she said. Regudo said they had to hire a sign language expert to translate the statements of one of the victims, a deaf mute.