The Australian Federal Police has revealed how it exposed an international sex-trafficking ring involving an unassuming supermarket manager, leading to a national landmark ruling.
Structured like a standard corporation, the ring had a CEO, head of HR, logistics lead and office manager.
These four executives were part of a sinister machine that trafficked women and girls from Indonesia and forced them into sexual servitude in Australia. The unravelling would lead to the first child-trafficking conviction in Australia, the AFP said. Police allege that several victims were involved in the ring, working across 20 brothels and under many criminal members, but their prosecution related to one victim who came forward.
Surya Subekti was the “CEO” who travelled to Jakarta to bring a 17-year-old girl to Australia. The self-proclaimed “Batman” oversaw finances, transport and accommodation. Day-to-day, he worked as a Coles and Krispy Kreme manager.
The offshore “head of HR” was an Indonesia-based recruiter who held a litany of passports belonging to intended smuggling victims.
Elton Valentino acted as the “logistics lead”, cashing in a $50,000 annual salary for his driving role.
Then there was the “office manager”, 38-year-old Han Li.
‘I can no longer feel what it is like to be happy.’
The 17-year-old victim
Police raided some 20 brothels across Sydney and the Central Coast in early 2024 that they say were linked to the ring. The 17-year-old girl was taken between three of them, working 12-hour days, seven days a week, for money never seen.
On Friday, 45-year-old Subekti and 32-year-old Valentino were jailed after pleading guilty to trafficking a 17-year-old girl, who earlier described to the court how she had every movement tracked, lacked financial independence and was hospitalised due to work trauma.
Subekti was sentenced in the District Court to six years and five months’ prison, with a non-parole period of four years and five months. Valentino was sentence to serve two years and eight months behind bars with release on a good behaviour recognisance release order after one year and 10 months.
Now, AFP detectives have revealed how they worked with Indonesian authorities to track the men’s transnational movements, untangle the international ring and rescue the 17-year-old girl, who had been coerced into fearing police.
Unmasking ‘Batman’
Whispers of an Indonesian sex-trafficking ring helmed in Sydney sparked years of painstaking evidence gathering.
In December 2022, the AFP officially launched Operation Mirani. Leads gained through work with agencies including the Australian Border Force and Indonesian police led them to one man: so-called “Batman”.
To identify Subekti, investigators sifted through swaths of data, mapping travel patterns, visa applications, accommodation leases and finances. It soon became clear that he played a lead role.
Once police pinned down the brothels, their task grew more complex.
They suspected, as is often the case, that the criminals would have brainwashed the women into fearing arrest due to their visa status and the nature of their work.
Detectives had to work hard to undo such manipulation and assure the women that they were legally protected from immigration offences that were committed under duress.
Officers recalled the confronting work and living conditions in the brothels, where victims were caught in a web of psychological control and financial dependence.
Through patient, trauma-informed communication, detectives gained the trust of a brave 17-year-old girl who was crucial to their prosecution. She revealed that she had signed a contract in Jakarta, only to arrive in Sydney in January 2024 to find her passport confiscated and pay withheld.
“It is now difficult for me to trust other people as I am fearful my experiences will be repeated,” she later told a Sydney court in a victim impact statement.
“I can no longer feel what it is like to be happy.”
Proving forced labour, intent and exploitation is difficult as the bar is set exceptionally high.
Subekti’s defence team capitalised on this, arguing that because the minor had signed a contract and travelled willingly, her involvement was “non-oppositional”.
However, Judge Nicole Noman said that a child cannot legally consent to sexual exploitation in Australia and that the girl was exploited. Subekti had made a deliberate, financially driven move from running a visa business to a sex-work business. The judge noted that Valentino showed genuine remorse, while Subekti, whose “offending was undoubtedly intentional and planned”, did not.
One detective, granted anonymity to speak about the investigation, said that victims’ experiences were often undermined.
“Proving that someone’s not free to leave is that key element of the forced labour legislation,” the detective said. “It’s difficult because it’s very subjective and up to the individual of what a reasonable person would believe.”
A major turning point in the empire’s collapse came when Valentino broke ranks. Judge Noman said that the child-trafficking charges would probably not have been established except that Valentino walked voluntarily into a police station and disclosed the offending, including the victim’s age.
On the same day that Subekti was arrested, Indonesian police raided the home of a Jakarta-based recruiter who was found with several passports of women due to travel to Australia. Six women were prevented from leaving Indonesia.
Meanwhile, “office manager” Han Li had more serious charges withdrawn before receiving an 18-month good behaviour bond and $1000 fine for immigration breaches.
Overall, as part of the larger Operation Mirani, seven victims were removed from sexual exploitation in Australia and Indonesia, and 22 human trafficking assessments were made. While police would like to see more sex-trafficking convictions, often their priority is saving the victims from further harm, and they work with non-government organisations to ensure continued support.
Detectives emphasised that sex trafficking does not usually fit the stigma of someone physically chained under the stairs. Instead, it often relies on psychological control, financial duress and complex manipulation – tactics that are difficult to spot – and to prove.
AFP Commander Brett James said that sophisticated human-trafficking syndicates prey on vulnerable people for financial gain by exploiting language barriers, migration pathways and economic vulnerability, echoing the investigation and prosecution difficulties.
“These guilty pleas are testament to the courage of the victims and the persistence of investigators who worked relentlessly to uncover the full extent of the criminal enterprise,” James said.
As for people who feel trapped in sexual servitude, the Mirani detectives had this message: “We are here to help.”
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732). Anyone affected by sexual, domestic or family violence can also access 24/7, free and confidential trauma-specialist counselling through Full Stop Australia (1800 385 578).
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