Operatives of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) have raided a popular hotel located at Zamaru, near Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, and rescued seven suspected victims who were being prepared to be trafficked to Baghdad, Iraq, for exploitation.
The raid, which also led to the arrest of the manager of the hotel, followed credible intelligence from concerned stakeholders who noticed the unusual movement of some young girls and strange-looking men within the flourishing hotel, which NAPTIP said is used to harbour victims of human trafficking.
The agency had, in the last few months, intercepted no fewer than 60 suspected victims of human trafficking at the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja, on their way to some of the volatile and war-torn countries in the Middle East.
A profiling of the rescued victims indicated that six were deceived and recruited from Lagos, while one is from Delta State.
“They told me that I would be a house help in Baghdad and receive a good monthly salary. I believe them because I think Baghdad is in another country. Them no tell me to say I dey go work for Iraq”, one of the victims said, according to a statement that NAPTIP issued yesterday.
The director general of NAPTIP, Binta Adamu Bello, expressed displeasure over the roles of some unscrupulous service providers in recruiting and trafficking Nigerians for various forms of exploitation and warned that henceforth, the agency shall invoke the relevant provisions of its law to prosecute erring entities.
Represented by the director of research and programme development, Mr Josiah Emerole, the DG said, “It is sad the way some of the service providers in the country aid and abet the recruitment, transportation, transfers, and harbouring of Nigerians who are victims of human trafficking.”
“The hotel is believed to be a muster point for victims of human trafficking to some of the notorious destination countries. The manager of the hotel is being quizzed and we have also intensified the manhunt for other members of the trafficking gang working in collaboration with other criminal elements in Iraq.
“The suspected victims are trafficked from different parts of the country and harboured in the hotel. They are further briefed on how to evade arrest at any point by disguising themselves in various forms and answering questions from law enforcement officers at the airport.
“Due to the unpatriotic roles of some of these service providers, the agency shall henceforth invoke the appropriate section of its law to prosecute them. This is because harbouring suspected victims of human trafficking is also an offence in the trafficking law”, the director general said.
