Jail after teen forced into 70-hour weeks in brothels
Miklos Bolza and Alex Mitchell |
Two men have been jailed after a juvenile was trafficked into Australia to perform sex work at brothels with up to 10 clients per shift.
Surya Subekti, 45, unlawfully lured the vulnerable 17-year-old girl from the slums of Indonesia to Australia to act as an escort in January 2024.
She was put into forced labour servicing five to 10 clients per night at brothels in Sydney and Gosford for about two months.
Elton Valentino, 32, drove the victim to brothels where she was assigned to work each night.
In a powerful statement read at Sydney’s Downing Centre District Court earlier in July, the victim said the work was “a shock to my body”.
She described stomach pains, severe blood loss and difficulty walking, later diagnosed as a sexually transmitted infection.
“Before coming to Australia, I was like any other kid – I was happy and never experienced trauma before,” her statement said.
“It is now difficult to trust other people … I can no longer feel happy.”
On Friday, Judge Nicole Noman acknowledged this impact.
“These types of offences contemplate that there will be real harm,” she said while passing sentence.
Subekti used the alias ‘Batman’ in organising visas for a number of women to do sex work in Australia.
Both men tried to argue the girl had already been engaged in sex work at a karaoke house in Jakarta and voluntarily came to Australia knowing what she would be doing here.
The judge rejected this, saying the teen was a child under Australian law and that she could not have given informed consent.
Under the contract, she was required to work 10-to-12 hours every day for three months with three days of sick leave.
Thousands of dollars in salary were withheld.
Subekti knew the girl was underage and was instrumental in her trafficking, arranging her flight, visa and then organising attendance at various brothels, Judge Noman found.
He had complete control over her finances, deciding when to give her cash advances and supplying her with food, menstrual pads and personal hygiene products instead of a salary.
Her forced labour ceased in March 2024 when federal police raided a home in Banksia in Sydney’s south where she was found with ten other women.
Valentino was paid a salary to take women to brothels around Sydney.
He did not know the victim’s true age, telling police he thought she was 24.
However, he was reckless about a substantial risk she was underage, the judge found.
Judge Noman jailed Subekti for more than six years due to his more senior role, finding he had shown no remorse.
He told a psychiatrist he trafficked women to deal with financial pressures stemming from a gambling problem.
WIth time served, Subekti will be eligible for release in November 2030 once his minimum term of four years and five months expires.
Valentino, the driver, was hit with a maximum sentence of two years and eight months.
He had expressed some insight, telling a forensic psychologist that people under 18 engaging in sex work was “just not right” and “really f***ed up”.
With time served, he will be released on August 28 once his minimum 22-month term ends and will be put on a five-year good behaviour bond.
Both men will be listed on the NSW child protection register after release.
A joint investigation between Australian Federal Police and Indonesian National Police led to a Jakarta woman being charged with human trafficking offences.
Indonesian police found six woman scheduled to travel to Australia with the syndicate but prevented their departure.
A 35-year-old woman who allegedly enrolled the woman at a Sydney college to prolong their stay was arrested by federal police and taken to Villawood detention centre as a non-citizen.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
AAP