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Saturday, February 04, 2006
2 minors rescued in NBI raid on KTV bar near CCPO office
A team from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) hit another girlie bar late Thursday night in an operation that rescued 29 “prostituted women,” two of them minors.
Steve’s Music Bar and KTV, which is just a few meters from the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), is among well-known establishments of its kind in the city.
It was the first time a law enforcement unit raided Steve’s since it opened in 1993. It is located at the corner of Gen. Maxilom Ave. and Echavez St.
The bar’s manager, Grace Guisando, and its registered owner, Jocelyn Raco, now face charges of trafficking in persons before the Office of the Cebu City Prosecutor.
“The acts of subjects in prostituting victims by recruiting, harboring and tacking advantage of their vulnerability to obtain profit or material gain for herself and the owner falls squarely under the offenses provided under RA (Republic Act) 9208,” said NBI 7 Chief Medardo de Lemos.
Guisando and Raco were brought to the Office of the Cebu City Prosecutor for inquest yesterday.
They opted to undergo preliminary investigation and signed a waiver of detention. They have 10 days to answer the NBI’s charges. If elevated to the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Guisando and Raco, once arrested, will be held without bail.
Penalty
RA 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act penalizes anyone who “maintains or hires a person to engage in prostitution or pornography,” and offers stiff penalties.
It defines trafficking as the recruitment, transportation, transfer or harboring, or receipt of persons with or without the victims’ consent or knowledge for exploitation, sexual or otherwise.
It targets the club owners and managers and treats the women as “exploited victims.”
This is the fifth NBI anti-trafficking operation since December. The first two were on bars in Lapu-Lapu City. The last two were at Club Harem in Mandaue City, and Celebrity Club in Cebu City.
Last Thursday’s raid commenced with NBI Supervising Agent Jess Manapat and Special Investigator Florante Gaoiran entering the bar two hours before midnight.
In an affidavit, they said they were immediately met by Guisando, who offered them the services of any of the girls — guest relation officers — under her care.
Signal
They picked one and gave Guisando the agreed amount of P4,000. One of the bills had been previously marked with a special type of powder at the NBI criminal laboratory.
As soon as the money was received, they said they immediately signaled the other agents, who were in vehicles parked near the establishment, to carry out the raid.
Catherine (not her real name), 21, was the girl that Manapat and Gaoiran paid to “take out.”
She executed an affidavit at the NBI office and confirmed that the P4,000 money given to Guisando was the “bar fine” that the management charges customers who want to take a girl out.
The girls, she said, come from Cebu and other areas including Davao in Mindanao and parts of Luzon.
Along with the 28 other women rescued during the raid, Catherine was turned over to the Department of Social Welfare and Development yesterday afternoon.
The two under-aged girls in the group will be held until their parents come to take them home. (KNR)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (February 4, 2006 issue)
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