Cooper Dealer Fights Against Human Trafficking

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company European dealer, Sinton Tyres, has joined forces with an expedition that delivered five 4×4 vehicles to Sierra Leone in the fight against modern-day slavery. The Hull Freedom Trail group drove the quintet of Mitsubishi L200s from Hull to the town’s twin town of Freetown, capital of Sierra Leone, and delivered them to four aid agencies working in the city with the child victims of human trafficking. The mission celebrated the 200th anniversary of the abolition of slavery in the UK, a movement spearheaded by Hull native, William Wilberforce.

UK Cooper dealer Sinton Tyres donated Cooper’s rugged Discoverer STTs, which were fitted to the L200s to help them cross the difficult terrain the expedition faced on its 5,180-mile journey. “The asphalt roads pretty much ran out in Guinea,” explained expedition leader, Jonathan Richards. “On the dirt and mud tracks, the tyres were superb – we endured hours and hours of potholes and ruts – while on the asphalt, there was very little noise…Ironically, some of the harshest terrain we faced was actually in Freetown, where there are huge ruts that carry the rain away. This is where the vehicles will actually be used.”

The aid agencies will use the L200s to transport children who have been affected. Some are reunited with their parents, while others are transported to foster families or orphanages.