While the trafficked victims of the Chinese sex mafia were jubilating over the 41- year jail term of the three accused persons, the now jail birds were busily weeping over how they would serve their terms at the Nsawam prisons in Accra. As at press time yesterday the three traffickers were shocked to the bone and could not come to terms with their sentence, they have not only been weeping uncontrollably but have been accusing one another for their present predicament. Meanwhile, the victims have been celebrating, screaming on top of their voices, they were seen cutting a cake to symbolize victory over their slave master. When the news filtered into their hide out they were seen hugging staff and saying thank to all who have contributed to the successful trail. 'We want to know when we are going back to our families in China,” they cried out The New Crusading Guide investigative journalist’s seven-month investigations uncovered the trafficking ring and consequently led to the arrest of the accused persons on St.Valentine's Day, February 14, 2009. He also presented a dossier of evidence on the activities of the accused persons and produced video, audio tapes and still pictures on their activities. The Ghana Police Anti Human trafficking Unit, Enslavement Prevention Alliance West Africa (EPAWA), the Ministry for Women and Children (MOWAC) and the Social Welfare of Ghana contributed in various ways in ensuring effective prosecution of this case. Speaking to the head of the anti human trafficking Unit of the Ghana Police, OSP. Patience A. Quaye expressed happiness that there have been successful convictions. She also expressed gratitude to all who helped and added that every thing was put in place to ensure the conviction since human trafficking was very difficult to prove in court. 'We did a lot to cover all loop holes, it was no arm chair investigation and we hope to do more, we are watching those foreigners who think they can come into Ghana and misbehave, I know you (Anas and team) are watching too as an undercover journalists" she stated. Enslavement Prevention Alliance - West Africa, which with the assistance of the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs and the Chinese Embassy has been providing protection and care for the 7 Chinese sex trafficking victims since their rescue were also happy about the conviction. They expressed gratitude to all those who played key roles in their care of the victims. “Although their initial experience in Ghana was being trafficked for sexual exploitation, they will now return to China having received essential services to prepare them to reintegrate back into their communities and having obtained justice for the suffering that they endured in the hands of the traffickers. In all such cases, it is essential to ensure that the victims receive proper care and assistance to empower them to lead a healthy life in the future and prevent their further vulnerability to being re-trafficked," Tatiana Kotlyarenko, Executive Director said in an interview. Norma Ramos the Co-Executive Director of Coalition Against Trafficking in Women in the United States also commented about the conviction. "These convictions demonstrate that it is possible to hold traffickers accountable for their crimes and thereby begin to create the social and political conditions that will be inhospitable to human trafficking in Ghana." Having been found guilty of trafficking their own nationals for prostitution in Ghana, the three Chinese nationals were on Monday 22 June, sentenced to a total of 36 years imprisonment with hard labor by an Accra Circuit Court presided over by Mrs. Elizabeth Ankomah. The court found the leader of the sex ring, James Xu Jin, his wife Chou Xiou Ying, and Sam Shan Zifan, Jame's younger brother, guilty for recruiting, transporting and harboring the victims for prostitution. James Xu Jin was sentenced to 17 years imprisonment, while Chou Xiou Ying and Sam Sam Zifan were sentenced to 12 years imprisonment each. In the breakdown, they were all found guilty on the charge of conspiracy and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment each. While on the charge of human trafficking, James was found guilty and was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment, his wife Chou and his younger brother were also found guilty of the same offence and were sentenced to ten years imprisonment each. The court revoked the resident permit for James and ordered that all the money found on the accused persons be paid into the Human Trafficking Fund, the court also ordered that the money retrieved from the victims be returned. The trial judge, Mrs. Elizabeth Ankomah delivering her judgment stated that the prosecution had proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused persons acted together to recruit, transport and harbour the girls for prostitution and slammed their defense of running a restaurant. The court held that the girls who were eight in number, were "reduced to the state of slavery" by James and Chou who had deceived the girls into believing that they (the girls) were to assist in running a restaurant business in Accra, only for their passports to be seized and for them to be forced into prostitution. The court ordered the deportation of the convicts after serving their terms. It also revoked James's resident permit and further ordered that his assets should be confiscated to the state. The Judge also ordered that the $14,560 which was found in James's house on February 14, 2009, - the day of the arrest - be paid into the Human Trafficking fund. The court further held that James misled officials of the Ghana Investment Promotion Council (GIPC) and the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) and managed to get documentation to stay• in the country to run his prostitution business and not a restaurant, as he had made those institutions to believe. According to the court, from the totality of the evidence, a tour of the brothel called Peach Blossom Palace and from the evidence of neighbors, it was clearly evident that James and Chou did not run a restaurant, as they had indicated to the court. The Judge also stated that it was obvious that the debt allocated to the victims forced them into a state of vulnerability adding that it was also evident that the victims were put under bondage by the Traffickers. The Court held that there was awesome evidence to the fact that Sam (second accused), conspired with James and his wife Chou and acted as the interpreter for the victims and their clients who were mostly Indians, Chinese and Lebanese. Mr. B.O.K. Johnson, Counsel for the convicts, pleaded for leniency for his clients. The New Crusading Guide's undercover investigation led to a raid by the Ghana police on the issue, the BBC World Service radio has already aired events leading to the raid on the world service. Information reaching the paper indicates that the girls would be on their way back to china in the next few days. Source: New Crusading Guide's