The Nigerian woman told a familiar tale. Fleeing poverty, with few prospects at home and lured by the promise of legal employment, she became one of the tens of thousands of migrants who have been braving the Mediterranean in crowded boats, bound for Europe.

After she landed, the traffickers who arranged her journey told her she owed them 50,000 euros, about $56,000. Alone, with no money and unable to speak the language, she found herself at their mercy. They took her documents and forced her into prostitution on the streets of Palermo.

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Source: http://www.nytimes.com/