The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) have arrested a second suspect, a 30-year-old woman, for her alleged involvement in trafficking in persons of a 21-year-old woman in Cape Town.

According to the Hawks, its team based in George and Bellville, together with officials from the Department of Home Affairs, conducted a search at an identified brothel in Rondebosch during August 2026.

During the search, a 21-year-old woman was found in the flat and working as a sex worker. Hawks spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Siyabulela Vukubi, says their investigations revealed that she was a victim of trafficking and was rescued by the team.

According to Vukubi, the person who was alleged to have trafficked the victim was identified and arrested. Philip Udogwu, who is the first suspect arrested in the matter, appeared in Wynberg Magistrates Court on 21 September 2026. He remains in custody, awaiting his formal bail application.

Vukubi added that the second suspect was arrested on Monday, 12 October 2026, after it was established that Udogwu had an accomplice who worked with him to groom the victim into a sex worker.

The latest suspect will make her first appearance in the Wynberg Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 13 October 2026.

These arrests follow the arrests of three suspects who are accused of trafficking a woman in Woodstock in September. According to reports, the 22-year-old victim met a 29-year-old suspect, identified as Jamine Maureen Robert, via TikTok in April 2026, after she was looking for a hair stylist in Cape Town.

It is reported that the suspect made arrangements for the victim to travel to Cape Town, picked her up upon her arrival in Cape Town, took her to a hotel, and forced her into prostitution.

The victim, however, managed to escape and ran to Woodstock South African Police Service (SAPS), where she was assisted.

READ MORE: Human trafficker arrested and victim rescued in Woodstock