National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has receivedl 231 Nigerians, including 27 suspected traffickers repatriated from Ghana.
Gatekeepers News reports that the returnees were handed over to NAPTIP and Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) by the Ghanaian government, through its Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).
This followed a major operation that dismantled a human trafficking and cybercrime network operating out of a gated estate in Ghana.
Among the returnees were four women believed to be victims of human trafficking. The group also included young men who had allegedly been held captive for years and forced to engage in cyber fraud activities.
Dominic Mensah, EOCO representative revealed that ‘Operation rescue shield’ was initiated following a tip-off about illegal activities occurring in 26 houses within one estate in Ghana.
Mensah said, “We received a complaint on March 28th from an informant alleging that a group of Nigerians were using young people for cybercrime.”
“Surveillance was carried out, and we launched the operation at 3:30 a.m. one week ago with support from national security and police services. A total of 233 persons were initially arrested.”
The EOCO official added that many of the victims had been lured to Ghana with promises of legitimate jobs but were instead trapped and coerced into participating in cybercrime schemes.
