Two Bangladeshis sentenced in Canada for human trafficking and sexual assault
The two Bangladeshi men sentenced to prison. Photo: Collected
A court in Saskatchewan, Canada, has sentenced two Bangladeshis to prison for human trafficking and exploiting a Bangladeshi woman. On Thursday local time, Mohammad Masum was sentenced to 14 years in prison and Sohel Haider to four years. Both men were also ordered not to contact the woman.
Masum and Haider were convicted of human trafficking in August. They were found guilty of exploiting the woman by forcing her to work at various restaurants in Gull Lake, Tisdale and Elrose in Saskatchewan. Masum was also convicted of three counts of sexual assault.
The offenses took place between August 2022 and March 2023. The court was told that the woman had traveled from Bangladesh to Canada on a visitor visa with plans to settle there permanently. She met Haider through a job advertisement. Haider later took her to Saskatchewan and employed her at his restaurant in Gull Lake.
She was subsequently taken to Masum's restaurant in Tisdale and then to another restaurant in Elrose. The woman told the court that although she worked long hours six days a week, she received little or no pay. She was moved from one restaurant to another. In her words, she felt as though she was “some kind of commodity” being sold to a buyer. The sexual assault charges against Masum were also proven.
The woman told the court that she had been unable to speak out about the incidents. She was also afraid that society would blame women for sexual abuse. She eventually escaped the situation with help from others.
Before delivering the sentences, Judge Miguel Martinez said the incidents had caused the woman to lose her confidence and develop a fear of moving around independently.
Haider's lack of a prior criminal record and his physical illness were considered mitigating factors in determining his sentence. He was sentenced to four years in prison, the minimum sentence prescribed for human trafficking.
He was also ordered to pay $5,885 in compensation. Masum was ordered to pay $12,268.
Crown prosecutors said the case could become an important precedent in human trafficking prosecutions in Saskatchewan. This is because trafficking can be established even without transporting a person across an international border, if someone is forced to work through control over their employment, housing, wages and immigration status.
