‘Queen of Temple Street’ toppled as police break human trafficking syndicate accused of luring Thai women to Hong Kong
- Police arrest 69-year-old woman and her daughter, 32, on suspicion of trafficking people to Hong Kong after officers rescue two victims
- Suspect’s partner thought to be a triad gang member is still at large as are two others who solicited would-be clients
Hong Kong police have arrested the alleged ringleader of a human trafficking syndicate that lured Thai women into the city with bogus job offers and then induced them into becoming sex workers in Yau Ma Tei.
The 69-year-old woman, known as the “Queen of Temple Street” in the city’s underground sex industry, was picked up during a police raid on her Kowloon City flat on Thursday, according to a source familiar with the case. Officers also apprehended her daughter, 32, at midday on Friday.
The pair were detained on suspicion of trafficking people to Hong Kong – an offence that is punishable by up to 10 years under the Crimes Ordinance.
Police are searching for at least three others, including her partner and those who solicited would-be clients on Temple Street and took them to the syndicate’s brothels.
The Post learned that the partner, a suspected member of Fuk Yee Hing triad society, was a local man aged over 60 who teamed up with her to run an illegal prostitution business on the street for more than two decades.