3 girls rescued from sex den

Northern Police District (NPD) intelligence agents rescued three teenagers from a suspected prostitution den in Valenzuela City last Thursday night.

Superintendent Jimili Macaraeg, NPD-Intelligence and Investigation Division (DIID) chief, said the girls, aged 16 to 17, were turned over to the local social welfare department in Valenzuela yesterday.

Macaraeg ordered his men to immediately file charges against the persons responsible for the exploitation of the girls, particularly the owner of the Lucy Videoke Bar on Barangay Malinta, where they were rescued.

SPO4 Tony Tenorio said that last Wednesday, they received a phone call from a concerned individual informing them of the illegal operation of the videoke bar, which, the caller claimed, not only employs minors, but also acts as a front for prostitution.

Combined operatives from the NPD-DIID and the District Women and Children’s Concerns Desk (DWCCD) swooped down on the bar at around 11 p.m.

"We checked on the veracity of the report and rescued the girls," Tenorio said.

Two bar workers, Rizza Sullano, 21, a resident of Obando, Bulacan, and Myra Grace Paragos, 25, a resident of Guiguinto, Bulacan, were also rescued.

"We were informed that the workers had been barred from going out of the bar by the establishment’s owner," Tenorio said.

Macaraeg ordered Tenorio to personally prepare pertinent documents for the proper filing of charges against the bar owner and his cohorts.