South Africa Police Rescue 26 Naked Ethiopians from Traffickers

Johannesburg: So, get this—South African police just rescued 26 Ethiopians who were being held by suspected traffickers. They managed to break a window and escape from a house where they were kept naked. Can you believe that?

It all went down when neighbors heard the noise and called the cops. The police swooped in and arrested three people for trafficking and having an illegal gun. They even asked the public to report any other naked folks wandering around. Wild, right?

Reports say there were about 60 Ethiopian men trapped in that bungalow. Local news showed some pretty disturbing stuff, like blood on the ground near the window. Eleven of the rescued were taken to the hospital for treatment, but some of the Ethiopians are still missing.

A police spokesperson mentioned that this looks like a classic human trafficking case. They were kept naked to humiliate them and prevent escape. It’s just heartbreaking.

South Africa has been a destination for many immigrants since apartheid ended, but there’s a lot of fear and xenophobia around it. People worry about crime and unemployment, which makes things tough for immigrants.

According to the latest census, there are about 2.4 million foreign-born people in South Africa. While most come from nearby countries, there are around 58,000 Ethiopians living there.

This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. Back in August, 82 Ethiopians were found crammed into another house in Johannesburg. They didn’t have enough food or proper facilities. Some were even minors.

Authorities said those folks were smuggled into the country, not trafficked. Now, police are trying to figure out if these two cases are linked, but language barriers are making it tough to get answers.

A neighbor was shocked by the whole thing. She said she only saw people at that house a few weeks ago when her son went to get a ball he kicked over the fence. Just goes to show you never know what’s happening next door.