Testimony of abuse at human trafficking trial

A London, Ont. woman at the centre of a human trafficking trial told the court she suffered physical and financial abuse at the hands of the accused Wednesday.

The woman — who cannot be identified — testified that she was drawn into the sex trade in the fall of 2019 and was involved with three people.

One of them, Meaz Nour-Eldin, 25, also known by the name “Streets” pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking in persons earlier this week.

However, the trial now involves a man and a woman who have both pleaded not guilty.

Elkan Vyizigaro, 25, who goes by the nickname “Lavish” and Jamie Ryckman, 26, both face human trafficking-related charges.

The victim testified that while working with clients she brought in between $850 and $870 a night, but had a difficult time paying her bills, telling the court, “I was not provided with any money to pay my rent.”

She said on one night, “All the money given to me was directly given to Lavish.”

The woman said near the end of her involvement things turned violent and Streets hit her, telling the court, “I had never been slapped in the face like that by anyone.”

She continued, “I was very scared you know, he [Streets] was sending death threats.”

The woman will continue with her testimony when the trial resumes on Thursday.