Entertainment club operator trafficked 3 women, assaulted 2 of them

Jean Iau
The Straits Times
April 19, 2022

The operator of an entertainment club has been jailed for 41 months and fined $27,365 for trafficking three women who were hired as dancers.

In a statement on Tuesday (April 19), the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said that Jaiho Club operator Alagar Balasubramanian, 47, imposed financial demands that the women would not be able to repay if they wished to quit.

They were not paid any salary throughout their employment in 2016, which ran on a six-month contract.

Balasubramanian also seized their passports, work permits and mobile phones and threatened to hurt them if they returned to India without his approval.

Two of the women were assaulted by him, said MOM.

It added that all three women have since returned to India.

MOM said that its investigation officers visited the women regularly to check on their well-being and engaged professional counselling services for them.

They also got temporary employment under the Temporary Job Scheme prior to returning to India.

Balasubramanian faced four charges under the Prevention of Human Trafficking Act and claimed trial to three.

He was acquitted of one charge.

There is a gag order on the victims’ identities.

The court heard that Balasubramanian was caught after a police report was made and police officers raided the club on May 30, 2016.

The three victims were not well educated and were unfamiliar with Singapore. Two had not been to Singapore before, while the other victim stayed in Singapore only for a week prior to being employed by the club. 

Balasubramanian recruited the women from their villages in India, and knew that they would be susceptible to his coercion, said the prosecution.

The victims testified that they were not allowed to leave the premises on their own.

One of them said: “(The club) is like a big jail. Once you are caught in his clutches, you can only leave when he releases you. You just have to go along with him, and only if he likes you he’ll take good care of you... Otherwise, he will torture you and reduce you to nothing.”

The women lived on the third floor, above the club. Balasubramanian also lived at the club during their employment.

The dancers were given work phones to call regular patrons and entice them to visit the club.

They were required to allow customers to dance with them and touch them in exchange for money.

Balasubramanian’s lawyer Kalidass Murugaiyan from Kalidass Law Corp argued that his client had a rule against customers touching the dancers, and that the victims had disobeyed him.

Deputy public prosecutors Han Ming Kuang and Selene Yap countered that Balasubramanian could easily have enforced the rules, given the defence’s case that there were bouncers present when troublemakers were present at the club.

Those found guilty of human trafficking here face a mandatory jail sentence of up to 10 years and a fine of up to $100,000 for first-time offenders.

They also face up to six strokes of the cane.

Members of the public who suspect or are aware of labour trafficking activity can report to MOM on 6438-5122, or e-mail mom_fmmd@mom.gov.sg

The Straits Times

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