The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has received 231 Nigerians repatriated from Ghana, among whom 27 have been identified as suspected human traffickers.
The group was formally handed over to NAPTIP and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) by the Ghanaian government through its Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).
The repatriation followed a major bust of a trafficking and cybercrime network operating from a walled estate in Ghana.
Among those returned on the evening of Thursday, April 24, were four women believed to have been trafficked, while the rest were primarily young men.
Several of them were reportedly held in captivity for extended periods and allegedly forced into online fraud activities by the criminal ring.
During a handover ceremony at NAPTIP’s Lagos office in Ikeja, EOCO representative Dominic Mensah detailed how the operation named “Operation Rescue Shield” was launched after authorities received intelligence about suspicious activity in 26 houses within a single estate.
EOCO’s Anti-Human Trafficking Unit officer, Dominic Meza, said the agency was alerted on March 28 by an informant who reported that a group of Nigerians was exploiting youths for cybercrime.
“Following surveillance, we carried out a coordinated raid at 3:30 a.m. last week with assistance from national security forces and police units,” Meza explained. “In total, 233 individuals were apprehended.”
He further revealed that many of the victims were deceived with promises of legitimate employment in Ghana.
But held against their will and compelled to engage in cybercriminal activities. Some had only recently arrived, while others have been trapped in the syndicate’s operation for years.
%20has%20received%20231%20Nigerians%20repatriated%20from%20Ghana){kind=link}