Dual citizen charged with luring 15 PNG students in human trafficking scheme

A woman accused of luring 15 students from Papua New Guinea to Australia and exploiting them has been arrested at a major airport.

A woman allegedly responsible for the human trafficking and forced labour of 15 students from Papua New Guinea (PNG) has been arrested.

The woman, a PNG-based Australian and Nigerian citizen, was arrested by Australian Federal Police officers at Brisbane Airport on Wednesday.

It is alleged the 56-year-old lured 15 PNG students to Australia with promises of full educational scholarships between March, 2021 and July, 2023.

The AFP charged the woman upon her arrival at Brisbane Airport on Wednesday. Picture: AFP

Police allege that upon their arrival, the students were instead forced to sign legal documents to pay previously unmentioned tuition fees, airfares, insurance, visa applications, and legal fees.

The students were then allegedly forced to work at farms across Queensland - at times in contravention to their visas - where their wages were withheld and used as payments for their “excessive” debts, police say.

The woman’s arrest followed a lengthy investigation by the AFP’s Northern Command Human Trafficking Team into a group of PNG nationals who were allegedly being forced to work on farms against their will after moving to Australia to study.

The woman allegedly lured 15 students from PNG with the promise of full educational scholarships. Picture: AFP

She has since been charged with four counts of trafficking in persons, 14 counts of deceptive recruiting for labour or services, and 13 counts of engaging in conduct that caused a person to enter into debt bondage.

The 56-year-old appeared in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday, and was granted conditional bail to reappear in court on September 19.

AFP Detective Superintendent Adrian Telfer said the organisation was committed to protecting vulnerable foreign nationals from exploitation in such schemes.

“(Alleged) victims of debt bondage and other human trafficking offences can be lured to Australia with a promise of a dream career or free education, things they may not have access to in their country of origin,” Superintendent Telfer said.

“If the conditions of that promise change, it can leave (alleged) victims in an extremely vulnerable situation in a foreign country, where they are likely to have little financial or emotional support, and face issues with language barriers.

“The AFP can help people who are exploited and is focused on ensuring the welfare of (alleged) victims.”

Anyone who is being exploited or knows someone being exploited at work in Australia has been encouraged to contact the AFP.

Originally published as Dual citizen charged with luring 15 PNG students in human trafficking scheme