A man and a woman in the Philippines have been spared from having their kidneys trafficked! Two women who planned to sell and profit from the victims’ organs have been arrested.
This case came to The Exodus Road because of a survivor’s courage. A local media organization in the Philippines created a documentary about organ trafficking. In the production process, a survivor whose organ was illegally taken and sold shared information about an illicit organ trafficking business. The media outlet contacted authorities, who reached out to The Exodus Road and asked for support on the case.
The perpetrators were promising vulnerable people that if they gave up kidneys, they would receive significant payment. But after the operation to remove the organs was complete, the traffickers would sell the kidneys and keep the money. When the victims tried to claim the payment they’d been promised, the traffickers would threaten them into silence.
The Exodus Road’s Philippines team helped law enforcement plan the mission and accompanied them to the clinic for logistical support. During the intervention at the hospital, law enforcement interrupted the exploitation of a man and a woman who had been tricked into surrendering their kidneys before the surgeries took place. The two woman traffickers were arrested.
This was The Exodus Road’s first direct involvement in an organ trafficking case. Although this is not a common form of trafficking, organ trafficking does happen, and your support is allowing us to expand into bringing justice to this dark industry. Thank you!
