TORONTO — Ottawa Police Service and the Ontario Provincial Police have arrested three men in connection with an organized human trafficking ring that spanned Ottawa, the Greater Toronto Area, and other southern Ontario communities over more than a year.The arrests took place July 8 in Ottawa following a joint probe by the OPP’s Provincial Anti-Human Trafficking Unit East Team and Ottawa Police’s Human Trafficking Unit under the Intelligence-led Joint Forces Strategy. The investigation also drew on support from London Police Service and financial intelligence from FINTRAC.Authorities say the network operated primarily between Ottawa and the GTA from 2025 into July 2026, with activity also reported in London, Windsor, and Sarnia. Investigators describe it as an organized effort targeting vulnerable individuals for exploitation.Three men face numerous human trafficking and related charges:Moad Ben Yahya, 28 (aka ‘Benzi’)Abdulaziz Al-Zouaghi, 27 (aka ‘Zee’)Mohammad Elmuradi, 26 (aka ‘Mur’)All three were arrested in Ottawa. Police have not released further details on the specific charges at this stage..Six women have been identified as potential victims. They have provided statements to police and received specialized supports and services. Investigators believe additional victims may exist who have not yet come forward.“We know that coming forward can be extremely difficult for victims of human trafficking,” the Ottawa Police statement reads. “Our priority is to ensure victims are treated with compassion, dignity, and respect while connecting them with the supports and resources they need.”Anyone who had contact with the accused or believes they may have been victimized is urged to contact the Ottawa Police Human Trafficking Unit at humantrafficking@ottawapolice.ca or 613-236-1222 ext. 5895. Police say they will respect victims’ wishes regarding charges..The arrests come days after the federal government announced $1.4 million in new funding to community groups across Canada to combat human trafficking and support survivors. The July 17 announcement by Minister of Women and Gender Equality Rechie Valdez included support for organizations in Ontario, including Windsor, as well as efforts focused on Indigenous women and girls, newcomers, and prevention programs targeting men and boys.Statistics cited in the funding release show that between 2014 and 2024, 93% of human trafficking victims who reported to police were women and girls, with roughly 63% under the age of 25..The Ottawa case shares troubling similarities with the organized grooming gang scandals that plagued several UK cities for years. In places like Rotherham, Rochdale, and Telford, networks systematically exploited vulnerable young girls — often from troubled backgrounds — through grooming, coercion, and repeated sexual abuse.Critics there argued that authorities were slow to act, hampered by fears of being labelled racist when many perpetrators shared similar ethnic or cultural backgrounds. Thousands of victims were failed as a result.While Canadian authorities acted more quickly in this case, the cross-jurisdictional Ottawa network reveals a comparable organized structure — painting a chilling picture of how easily vulnerable young women can fall prey to systematic exploitation.The probe remains active as police work to identify more victims and witnesses.
