Malawian authorities have uncovered a disturbing human trafficking operation where Ethiopian migrants passing through the country were being sold for $1000 per person. The Ministry of Homeland Security in Malawi recently discovered a holding facility for illegal migrants at Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa, where victims were detained until ransom payments were made by relatives in Ethiopia.
During a press briefing in Lilongwe, Minister Ken Zikhale Ng’oma said that an Ethiopian couple, Ahmed Muhamed Kondo and Demorah Kondo, were arrested for holding hostage 31 Ethiopian nationals in a confined secured cell.
Furthermore, he said that the trafficked Ethiopians were forced to pay $200 initially to be smuggled into Malawi and once held at the facility, they were sold for $1000 each with their release contingent on ransom payments from family members back home in Ethiopia.
The ministry reported that Kondo had operated this trafficking operation and holding facility for an extended period before being caught. Kondo and his wife have subsequently been deported from Malawi back to Ethiopia.