What began as a routine request from the Philippine National Police (PNP) turned into an investigation full of twists and turns.

After repeatedly proving their worth, the Destiny Rescue (an organisation whose rescue work in Thailand, Nepal, Cambodia and the Philippines Child Rescue helps fund) team in the Philippines has become integral to the PNP’s efforts to thwart human trafficking in the region. It wasn’t surprising but was still absolutely an honour when the PNP contacted Destiny Rescue’s local team to ask for support on a new case. The police had intel that a trafficker was renting out young girls for sex and they wanted our help taking him down. For this case, the police asked Destiny Rescue’s operatives for logistical support for the raid.

Officers worked quickly. In the past, agents and police may spend weeks or even months building a case and meticulously gathering intelligence. But this time, officers completed their undercover surveillance and were ready to initiate the raid in just a few days. Undercover officers, pretending to be sex buyers, arranged to meet the pimp at a predesignated location, ostensibly to pay for the girls and take them elsewhere for sex.

On a sunny day precisely one week after joining the case, Destiny Rescue’s rescue team picked up the pimp on the side of the road. He’d brought six victims to sell, four of whom were minors. The trafficker, confident and amiable, chatted like an overeager host as he prepared to exploit the children. Once an undercover officer passed marked bills to the trafficker, the “entrapment” phase of the operation was complete; police now had enough evidence to prosecute.

The officer let the facade fall away, quickly arresting the perpetrator as more police and caseworkers swooped in. Once the perpetrator realised what was happening, he tried to wash his hands of the whole situation. He threw the marked bills on the car’s floor and said, “I don’t want the money anymore! They’re yours, let me go!”

The arresting officer, of course, laughed off that offer and cuffed the child trafficker.

Three more rescued

Because they were working with credible but unverified information, they decided only to send a small team to the site. Without a full picture of what they might find in the apartment, the team would need to be careful in approaching it. 

As police pulled into the rural subdivision, a single officer and one of our agents approached the apartment. Using a key supplied by the perpetrator, they unlocked the door and cautiously stepped inside.

After finding no one in the first room, the men pressed further into the apartment. They found the pimp and three underage boys hiding in the apartment’s bedroom. They’d been frightened by the unexpected entry and hoped the intruders would leave without discovering them.

And on the bed, the team found the final victim: a young girl, sleeping soundly, completely unaware that her life was about to change.

The officers quickly called for a social worker to assist the new group of victims. After a COVID test at a rural health unit, the groups were brought together at a PNP station where caseworkers gathered information and performed medical and forensics tests.

The survivor’s testimonies revealed even more surprises. After confidently stating that she was 15, one girl turned out to be only 12. Two of the boys found in the apartment were not being sold but endured sexual abuse from one of the traffickers. The third underaged boy was just there to pick up his girlfriend, the final victim found sleeping on the bed.

The final unexpected turn came during the inquest when one of the boys, reluctant to enter the shelter, quietly slipped away undetected! Fortunately, Destiny Rescue was able to help police quickly locate him a couple of days later and returned him to social workers. He and the other children entered shelters where they would receive care and trauma rehabilitation.

Impromptu rescues are extremely rare in a department where meticulous planning and careful surveillance ensure safe, successful operations. But because of their quick thinking and practised coordination, these professionals were ready to make flexible, decisive adjustments that saved children and put traffickers behind bars. 

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