Playa del Carmen raid frees 11 women, arrests bar manager for human trafficking

State prosecutors, the Mexican Navy and the National Guard carried out a search warrant at a bar on the federal highway in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo. The operation rescued eleven women – nine Mexican, one Cuban and one Colombian – who had been forced to provide sexual services for a fee of 4,000 pesos plus an additional 1,000 pesos for room use. The women also worked as waitresses and were threatened with physical abuse by the bar owner's son if they refused.

Evidence seized from the premises included condoms, notebooks, electronic devices, a DVR and substances suspected to be narcotics. The bar’s manager, identified as Yolanda Fiordalise “N”, was detained for probable participation in the trafficking scheme; bags containing material resembling marijuana were found among her possessions. The victims were taken to the prosecutor’s office to give statements, and the case is now awaiting a judicial ruling.