Three persons detained during Operation Iceberg, the Counter Trafficking Unit’s (CTU) first major intelligence-led human trafficking operation in Tobago, have today, Wednesday 19 August, 2026, been charged following an extensive investigation into the alleged trafficking and sexual exploitation of a minor.
The charges mark a significant development in an investigation which began months before officers moved in across Trinidad and Tobago in July and resulted in three Preventive Detention Orders (PDOs), searches at multiple locations and the protection of vulnerable persons.
Titus Du Bois, 41; Francis Carolina Rengel Ojeda, 26; and Damon Domonic Charles, 38 were formally charged today following advice received from the Director of Public Prosecutions in relation to the investigation.
Du Bois and Rengel Ojeda were jointly charged with harbouring and receiving a person for the purpose of exploitation, contrary to Section 16 of the Trafficking in Persons Act, Chapter 12:10.
Rengel Ojeda and Charles were jointly charged with harbouring a person for the purpose of exploitation, contrary to Section 16 of the Trafficking in Persons Act.
Charles was additionally charged with sexual penetration of a minor.
Under Section 16 of the Trafficking in Persons Act, a person who, for the purpose of exploitation, recruits, transports, transfers, harbours or receives another person through specified means, including fraud or deception, abuse of power or abuse of a position of vulnerability, commits the offence of trafficking in persons. Upon conviction on indictment, the offence carries a fine of not less than TT$500,000 and imprisonment for not less than 15 years.
Operation Iceberg was the culmination of several months of intelligence gathering, surveillance and operational planning by Authorized Officers of the CTU and partner agencies, targeting an alleged human trafficking network operating across Trinidad and Tobago.
The operation unfolded in two coordinated phases between 22 and 25 July, 2026. The first phase began in Trinidad on 22 July, when Du Bois was arrested at Long Circular Road, St. James. Officers also executed a search warrant at his Morne Coco Road, Petit Valley premises as investigations continued into allegations surrounding the trafficking and sexual exploitation of a minor.
The investigation subsequently moved to Tobago, where Rengel Ojeda was arrested in Scarborough on 24 July. Charles was intercepted and arrested the following day in Signal Hill.
During the Tobago phase, Authorized Officers executed a search warrant at Charles’ residence on Aquamarine Drive, Signal Hill, where three Venezuelan female nationals between the ages of 20 and 23 were encountered and screened.
Officers also conducted an exercise at Chill Out Bar, Milford Road, where five Latin American women between the ages of 22 and 44 were encountered and subsequently processed by Immigration Enforcement.
At the centre of the investigation were allegations concerning a 17-year-old Venezuelan female who investigators believe was deceived by what appeared to be a legitimate employment opportunity in Trinidad before being subjected to sexual exploitation.
Investigations further alleged that after believing she had escaped her circumstances and would be given an opportunity to rebuild her life in Tobago before returning home, the exploitation continued.
Following their arrests, all three suspects were detained under Preventive Detention Orders pursuant to the Emergency Powers Regulations, 2026, while Authorized Officers continued the investigation. The laying of charges represents the latest stage of that investigation and follows weeks of continued evidence gathering and investigative work by the CTU and its law enforcement partners.
The charges arising out of Operation Iceberg reinforce the CTU’s commitment to pursuing human trafficking investigations wherever they lead and to protecting vulnerable persons from exploitation.
Members of the public who have information concerning suspected human trafficking, including information which may assist ongoing or historical investigations, are encouraged to contact the Counter Trafficking Unit. Information received will be treated sensitively and in accordance with the law.