S’porean woman who overstayed and became a sex worker in Australia gets deported

Singapore — A Singaporean woman living in Brisbane has been deported for overstaying her student visa.

A statement from the Australian Border Force (ABF) on Friday (March 19) said that the woman had been found guilty on state charges of engaging in prostitution knowingly participating in the provision of prostitution by another”.

Those convicted of knowingly participating in the provision of prostitution face three years’ jail for the first offence in the state of Queensland, where Brisbane is located.

While the ABF statement added that she had been deported, it did not say where she was sent.

A woman has been removed from Brisbane as an unlawful-non citizen. She was alleged to be involved in the illegal facilitation of sex work.
Read more at https://t.co/sFoh82PVhW pic.twitter.com/V9Gs38EGlU

— ABF (@AusBorderForce) March 19, 2021

In a video tweeted by the ABF, the woman could be seen cuffed and escorted by two female officers.

In their statement, the ABF said that the woman became an unlawful non-citizen when her visa expired.

The woman was detained by the Australian Border Force (ABF) on 25 February 2021 and removed on 11 March 2021.

ABF Assistant Commissioner Tim Fitzgerald said the removal of the woman indicated how seriously the ABF was taking the alleged facilitation of illegal sex work.

“We work very closely with our partners, including the Australian Federal Police and Queensland Police, to combat the myriad of issues associated with this sort of crime type,” Assistant Commissioner Fitzgerald said.

“When illegal prostitution is facilitated, other serious issues are often present. In addition, all non-citizens in Australia are required to hold a valid visa for their stay,” he added. /TISG