THE police have advised residents to disregard e-mails about human trafficking that have been circulating in Port Elizabeth.

Human trafficking detective Marcel van der Watt said most of the e-mails circulating in Port Elizabeth were false.

He said a recent e-mail in circulation claimed that a group of Nigerians driving a green vehicle were linked to a syndicate that had locked children inside a container in the Port Elizabeth harbour.

“...they found kids in a container at the harbour of which one was a 13-year-old boy from MTR Smit (Children’s Haven) that went missing,” the e-mail said. “They (including the police and media) were told to keep quiet until after the 2010 soccer World Cup in order not to influence possible visitors!!!”

Van der Watt said: “At the end of the day it is extremely difficult to identify the originator of the e-mail, but it is important for residents to realise the waste of resources and time that goes into investigating these allegations.”

Provincial police spokesman Brigadier Marinda Mills agreed with Van der Watt that only one e-mail had been found which had an element of truth. This was about the attempted abduction of a schoolgirl in Charlo last week.

“The girl was apparently walking home after school in Derbyshire Street, Charlo, when a green Tazz pulled up next to her and two men attempted to force her into the car.”

A fight ensued and the girl managed to stab one of the attackers on the arm. The men then jumped back into their car and sped away.

“These hoax e-mails are a real concern as they firstly create a false sense of panic and secondly take up a large portion of police resources to investigate,” she said.

Mills said the latest e-mail in circulation, also false, claimed that a three-year-old girl had almost been kidnapped at Greenacres on Tuesday. She said there was “absolutely no truth in reports that syndicates are running around Port Elizabeth trying to abduct people”.