Luis Sifuentes faces travel ban over human trafficking allegations

The Peruvian Judiciary has ordered a nine-month travel ban against sculptor Luis Sifuentes, known artistically as ‘Mamanka’, following investigations into aggravated human trafficking, sexual exploitation, and sexual abuse.

According to the Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Human Trafficking Crimes, the investigation involves a Colombian national identified as Valentina. The allegations suggest that the first contact occurred in Medellín, Colombia, when the victim was 10 years old and living in abandonment. It is alleged that Sifuentes paid third parties to abuse the minor.

When the victim was 14, the investigator reportedly financed her clandestine land transfer from Colombia to Peru without legal documentation. The victim was allegedly held at the sculptor's workshop in Lima, where she became pregnant by the suspect, who is 42 years her senior.

The judicial resolution follows a journalistic report by the program ‘Cuarto Poder’. The District Unit for the Protection and Assistance of Victims and Witnesses (Udavit) is providing legal and psychological support to the victim. Currently, the victim's six-year-old daughter remains in the custody of the accused in Peru.