MOMBASA, KENYA: A court in Mombasa has ordered the reopening of Shama Bar and Restaurant shut on New Year's Eve over allegations of human trafficking, pimping and extortion.
The club is situated in the Nyali suburb of Mombasa where the rich and elite live and patronise.
Its owners Zubeir Javaid Deen and Shama Javaid Deen and their daughter Zeba Zubair Javaid are charged with trafficking and recruiting three Indian and seven Nepalese women into prostitution at the club.
The prosecution has since withdrawn the charges against Shama Javaid Deen while her husband and daughter have been freed on a cash bail of Sh50, 000 each.
On Wednesday, Resident Magistrate Lilian Lewa ordered police to restore the club's license to allow the owners resume operation after weeks of closure.
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Lewa also directed the police to release seven Nepalese women and return their passports. Initially, the state which has seized their passports charged the foreigners with prostitution but withdrew the charges then converted them into prosecution witnesses against the club's owners and their daughter. They were then placed under the witness protection programme.
"I direct the police to release the license to the club owners to enable them resume operations and the police to release the women and their passport," said Lewa.
The Deens through their lawyer Cliff Ombeta said that they had lost a lot since the closure of the premises by police from the Transnational Organised Crime Unit.
Ombeta said that the club was the only source of livelihood for the family who pay a monthly rent of Sh200, 000 per month.
He said the family would continue to suffer loss if the court failed to order them to resume.
