US national arraigned on child abuse and trafficking charges.

The arraignment of American national Arthur Benjamin (49) and Filipina Lucy Dela Vega Victoria (57) took place in Olongapo City Regional trial Court December 6 before assisting Judge Jose L. Baustia. Benjamin arrived in style in a new Toyota Hi-Ace air-conditioned van and dressed in civilian clothes without handcuffs and walked without guards into the office of the judge.

The three cases filed against the suspects by the National Bureau of Investigation,(Violence Against Women and Children Division) headed by Attorney Pascual, are two charges of child abuse and one of human trafficking. Earlier Benjamin tried to avoid arraignment for the third time by informing the court that his lawyer was unavailable. Judge Bautista appointed an attorney to assist him during the reading of the charges. Benjamin and Dela Vega Victoria entered a plea of not guilty.

He is charged under Republic Act 7610 of sexual abuse of a minor committed January  2011 and July  2012 against one child who was also a victim of trafficking and another charge of violation of the anti-human trafficking law RA 9208 by five victim complainants.

The rescue of the minors took place last February 5, 2013 after retired police volunteers of different nationalities posing as sex tourists observed that the girls offered for prostitution were of a very young appearance. They passed the information to the NBI, Dole and the DSWD .The assistance the Preda Foundation,Olongapo was mobilized to care for the victims and the rescue was coordinated by Assistant Secretary of Justice Geronimo Sy.

The suspects Benjamin and Dela Vega Victoria were arrested during a dramatic raid led by the NBI on February 5, 2013 and they rescued the minors at the Avila bar (former Crowbar), national highway, Calapandayan, Subic, Zambales.It was taped by Nightline reporters of ABC TV, New York and is available on www.preda.org.  In the ABC broadcasted programmed Benjamin is shown answering questions about his young girlfriend.

He told the reporter ” We call her Chocolatte, She’s a little, tiny, very dark skinned girl …She needed a place to stay and I need a place to “do” her,  I bought a bar for her…He called a small girl close to him. He told the reporters “This is the girl. Her actual name is jade”. Asked if he could have a “Jade” back home in the  USA  he replied; “As a guy my age…no, it’s ain’t gonna happen…..I take anything I want, any time  I want….I know ,I’m going to hell. I know it….She needed somebody to take care of her, come here.. ” He drew the girl closer to him.   “you know what I want”,  he said to her. Then he addressed the reporters; ” But if she Fxxxs up, does something I don’t like, I kick her out in a heartbeat, doesn’t bother me, There’s always another one”.

The NBI allowed the US agents of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to join the operation since Benjamin is a US citizen and might attempt to flee Philippine Jurisdiction. Benjamin was found to be an undocumented alien and is held at the Immigration Detention center in Bicutan.  The next hearing of the case is set 4 April 2014.

 

-Fr.Shay Cullen