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A court has recognized the evidence gathered by the Investigative Committee’s Head Office as sufficient to convict Marina Nagibina, Anna Khamitova and Sergei Nikolayev. They were found guilty of 27 counts of human trafficking under Part 3, item “c” of Article 127.1 of the RF Criminal Code.

The court and investigators have established that in 2007, Nagibina, being founder and director of a company providing services to Russian citizens helping them with getting employment abroad, decided to recruit, transport, transfer and sale or buy women in a foreign state. She involved in her criminal activity her subordinate Khamitova and resident of Moscow Sergei Nikolayev. Using her personal liaisons and the Internet Ngibina set business relationships with some people permanently living in another country and members of organized criminal groups making money from sexual exploitation of women in night clubs, including from reselling those women.

In 2007-2010, the accused looked throughout the city of Khabarovsk women aged between 18 and 36 experiencing difficulties or in a vulnerable position and recruited them at the firm’s office promising legal job abroad and high wages. They deceived the victims into agreement and then bought them plane tickets, made visas and documents necessary to send them abroad, and in some cases forged them. When the victims got to their buyers, they were physically and mentally violated. They took women’s IDs and registered sham marriages to make their long staying in the country look legal. The victims were forced to provide intimate services at night clubs and were often resold several times.

According to the agreement they had, the accomplices got fees of at least 1,000 euro for each trafficked woman.

It was particularly hard to solve the crimes because they had been committed in different regions and countries so the investigators had to apply for legal assistance to competent authorities in five different states. During well-planned and meticulous efforts, the investigators managed to find special psychological contract with each of the victims. This allowed proving that all three of the accomplices were involved in human trafficking for a long period of time.

The court has sentenced Nagibina to 10 years in prison with respite, Khamitova got a suspended sentence of 4.5 years and Nikolayev to 3.5 years in prison.