WINNIPEG – A 29-year-old man from Winnipeg has been charged after forcing a woman to be an escort and assaulted her with electric shocks.
Police said on August 6, 2018, the Counter Exploitation Unit (CEU) started an investigation into the sexual exploitation of a woman. The woman had been held captive and forced to work as an escort. The incident came to light when the victim was able to get to a district police station for help.
The woman disclosed she had been forced to travel to Winnipeg from southern Ontario under threats of violence. She was taken to hospital having endured severe assaults over an extended period of time. The assaults included electric shocks and that she was forcibly confined in a freezer on a number of occasions.
September 2nd police arrested Andres Michael Pavao, 29-years-old from Winnipeg, and charged him with:
- Trafficking in Persons
- ‘Aggravated Assault
- Procuring Person to Provide Sexual Services
- Forcible Confinement x 2
- Uttering Threats to Cause Death or Bodily Harm
- Overcome Resistance by Attempting to Choke or Suffocate x 2
- Assault with a Weapon x 2
- Advertising Sexual Services
- Material Benefit from Sexual Services