Muscat: Police in Oman arrested members of a prostitution ring in the industrial port town of Sohar, about 230km north of Muscat, according to a Royal Oman Police (ROP) press release on Thursday.

“We have arrested 12 Asian expatriates, including three women,” a spokesman for the ROP’s Public Relations Department said, adding that the accused faced multiple charges.

He said that the defendants were charged with human trafficking and prostitution as well as violating the country’s residency laws. “Some of the arrested are illegal residents in Oman,” he pointed out.

The police, he said, received information that a particular apartment was being used by some expatriate women for nefarious activities.

“A Criminal Investigation team from Sohar police station raided the apartment and arrested the accused red handed,” he said, adding that a large amount of cash, believed to be income from prostitution, was also found from the place.

All the 12 accused were handed over to the Public Prosecution for further action.

“We would urge apartment owners to ensure that their tenants are not using the premises for any illegal activities,” he appealed. The ROP spokesman also asked residents to report any such activity to police.

Meanwhile in Muscat, police arrested three Asians for forging Oman visas and selling them to people here.

“The three accused were caught with all the paraphernalia used to forge visas,” the ROP spokesman said. He added that interrogation of the accused revealed that they had forged visas and sold to a number of people in Barka town, about 100km north of Muscat.

The ROP also continued its crackdown on drug peddlers with the arrest of two Asians in the northern parts of the country.

“The accused were caught red-handed in Shinas (about 300-km north of Muscat),” he said.

The police recovered two kilogrammes of heroin and 7,000 Omani riyals (Dh66,774) cash from the accused. Both were handed over to the Public Prosecution.

“We would appeal to residents to cooperate with us in fighting the scourge of drugs in the country,” he said and added that people should report any drug related activities to the police.

A bootlegger was arrested in Muscat’s Ghubra area with a large quantity of alcoholic beverages and a teenage citizen was held in Seeb area for stealing jewellery from the residence of another Omani.