The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons has arrested five suspected human traffickers and rescued 24 victims at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja. The victims, aged between 15 and 26, were recruited from Kano, Katsina, Oyo, Ondo and Rivers States and were being trafficked to countries including Iraq, Sudan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Among those arrested was a retired senior law enforcement officer accused of being a member of the trafficking syndicate. NAPTIP said the operation followed a tip-off and lasted nearly six hours, disrupting what it described as a major trafficking network.
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Some of the victims revealed they were deceived with false promises of jobs abroad, while others were misled by relatives. One victim said her father, among those arrested, tricked her into believing she was travelling to Europe, only to later discover she was to be sent to Baghdad.
NAPTIP’s Director General, Binta Adamu Bello, expressed concern over the role of parents and unregistered labour recruiters in trafficking, vowing that the agency would sustain raids at airports to dismantle such networks. She thanked security agencies and airport authorities for their support in the operation.
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