Trafficked

2005, 52 Minutes

Haunted by a decade-old case, a former police officer investigates how a young Thai girl was sold as a sex slave to a Sydney brothel.

The trafficking of women and children for prostitution is a global problem. The United Nations estimates that more than one million children are forced into sexual slavery each year. Some of them are trafficked into Australia.

This powerful documentary follows former police officer turned private investigator, Chris Payne as he investigates this shocking crime. As a member of the Australian Federal Police, Payne headed 'Paper Tiger', a special operation aimed at combating sex trafficking in the mid 1990s. For a decade, he has been haunted by the case of “Nikkie”, a young Thai girl found working in a Sydney brothel. Her rapid deportation stopped the police investigation in its tracks. Now Payne is back looking for answers...and Nikkie. How did she end up in that brothel? What happened to her afterwards?

Payne follows the trail of evidence from Australia to Asia. Along the way, he meets the parents of Phuongtong (Noi) Simpalee, another Thai “sex slave” whose death in an immigration detention centre in Sydney made headlines.

Through these stories and Payne’s own experiences, Trafficked provides a disturbing insight into the international sex trade.

A Film Australia National Interest Program in association with Abracadabra Films. © 2011 National Film and Sound Archive of Australia.

Free Teachers’ Notes - Download here