Notorious human trafficker Walid D. on trial for large-scale torture and extortion of Eritrean refugees

1. 11-02-2025 16:04
2. Safety and justice
3. Author: Cas de Jong

Today, the trial against notorious human trafficker Walid D. continues. Under his leadership, thousands of people were allegedly smuggled from Africa to Europe on boats. On the way, they were extorted, abused and raped.

It is something exceptional today in the court in Zwolle. Where justice previously mainly had to deal with smaller players, they now have a big fish: Walid D. This 39-year-old Eritrean is seen by the Public Prosecution Service as the leader of an internationally operating human trafficking network.

'Important matter for the Netherlands'

In addition to human trafficking, Walid is being prosecuted for a wide range of other crimes, including hostage-taking, assault, rape and extortion. The Public Prosecution Service has cooperated with the International Criminal Court and Interpol in this case.

The Public Prosecution Service was very keen to bring this notorious human trafficker to justice, says Public Prosecutor Gerben Wilbrink. "We consider this a very important case as the Netherlands. It concerns the inhumane circumstances under which these people were transported and held hostage. That is why we consider it important to take action against it."

Milestone

National rapporteur on human trafficking Conny Rijken conducted extensive research into the smuggling of African migrants to the Netherlands and calls this criminal case an important milestone.

Rijken: "I think it is very courageous that the Netherlands is doing this, to choose this path. This is an important signal that justice is doing everything it can to tackle these types of criminals. It is also very important for the recognition of the suffering of the victims."

Assigned to human traffickers

In almost all cases, it concerns Eritrean refugees who gave money to smugglers to transport them to Europe, Rijken explains.

"They flee their country and travel to a place with opportunities for the future. They cannot come to Europe legally and therefore have to rely on human traffickers who can arrange their journey."

Tortured in detention camps

These Eritrean migrants were then extorted in specially set up detention camps, where Walid and his accomplices operated according to a fixed pattern, Rijken continues. "During their journey, they were kidnapped and came under the complete control of their smugglers. They were locked up in warehouses and sheds, crammed into small cubicles. Where there was hardly any water."

"They were then forced to call relatives in Europe, who had to transfer money to the smugglers. So they actually had to pay a ransom to be released and be able to travel on."

'People were dying of hunger'

Eritrean refugees who now live in the Netherlands have also fallen victim to the cruelties of these human traffickers. An Eritrean woman - who wishes to remain anonymous for safety reasons - describes what it was like in these camps.

"We slept in a shed, without anything. Sometimes you were allowed to go outside for a short while to wash yourself. It was really hard for me. I was beaten all day long. I also saw people dying of hunger. They were already weakened by all the beatings they received," she says.

'They threatened to kill me'

In the meantime, she was forced to call her relatives to beg them for money. "Yes, that happened very quickly. They had to transfer money immediately."

"And if the money wasn't there within 5 minutes, they would kill me. I was really scared."

Characteristics of slavery

And there are countless stories of victims who tell how they were extorted under the threat of excessive violence. Victims were beaten, dragged by the hair or tied up for whole days in the burning sun.

Rijken: "What is most striking is the scale on which this took place, they were literally crammed together by the hundreds. And there was very brutal violence. People were really tortured and beaten. What we have also seen is that these gangs sell migrants on to other traders. This is what we know from slavery, these are real characteristics of slavery."

Migrants not fortune seekers

Rijken believes that this criminal case sends an important message. She hopes that it will now become clear to a wider audience what migrants have to endure during their journey to Europe.

"It is important that people know what migrants have been through. It is very easy to say that they are all fortune seekers. But there is a completely different story behind it. This is also good to know for the integration of Eritreans. That they get the right help and support."

Kidane Zekarias H.

Walid will be tried in the coming months together with five partners living in the Netherlands. In addition, the Public Prosecution Service also wants to prosecute the 39-year-old Eritrean Kidane Zekarias H., until recently one of the most wanted human traffickers in the world.

Kidane was arrested on January 1 of this year during an international police operation led by the United Arab Emirates. The Netherlands will soon request his extradition.