Two Nigerian brothers based in South Africa on Tuesday were jailed by a Gauteng judge in Pretoria for human trafficking.
According to IOL, a South African newpaper, the convicts, who ran a brothel in Arcadia, Pretoria, are Obioma Benjamin Abba, 32, sentenced to 12 years and Chinedu Justine Obasi, 38, sentenced to 18 years.
Judge Tolmay admitted that a life sentence was mandatory in such cases "if there were no mitigating factors".
However, the judge said the duo were first time offenders. Also, he said the brothers had spent more than two years in jail, awaiting trial.
Similarly, the judge explained that, although two women who worked as prostitutes for the brothers were exposed to a lot of trauma, they were already in the sex trade and hooked on drugs when they were recruited.
The judge, on the other hand, said the brothers kept the women captive in the flat in Arcadia, from where they had to work as prostitutes.
Two prostitutes earlier told the court of their harrowing life on the streets, while their pimps (convicts) "kept them hooked on drugs".
