Man arrested on suspicition of human trafficking

Garden City, Kan.–Garden City Police arrested a man on suspicion of human trafficking and other offenses following an incident early Friday.

Just before 6 am Friday morning, Officers responded to the east part of town where a woman was screaming and pleading for help and an unidentified man was following her. When Officers arrived, they located the woman in the driveway of a residence with numerous injuries. She was transported to St. Catherine Hospital for treatment of injuries; the man, identified as 44-year-old Mohamed Hakim, fled before police arrived but was later located and taken into custody.

Officers learned that the victim was recently placed into an arranged marriage to Hakim against her will in exchange for money and was relocated to the United States from overseas by family to carry out the arrangement. After arriving to Garden City, the victim was physically and sexually assaulted and confined to the home without communication or resources other than provided by Hakim. Further investigation revealed that the victim’s relocation to the United States was facilitated under transactional and coercive circumstances.

Hakim was lodged in the Finney County Jail for Rape, Aggravated Domestic Battery, Aggravated Human Trafficking, Aggravated Kidnapping, and Criminal Threat.

The investigation is ongoing.

*The person(s) involved has not yet been convicted of a crime and are presumed innocent. The presumption of innocence shall continue until such time that the person(s) accused may be found guilty by a court of law.*