THE National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has confirmed the rescue of 80 Nigerians trafficked to the Niger Republic.
The NAPTIP Commander, North-West, Abdullahi Babale, disclosed this to journalists yesterday in Kaduna.
He said those rescued included 59 females and 21 males aged between 16 and 35 years.
The NAPTIP commander said the victims were rescued by police in the Niger Republic on August 9.
Babale said: “On receiving the information, a special operation was coordinated in the Niger Republic and 80 victims of human trafficking were rescued after crossing through illegal routes and bush via Mai’adua control post en route to Europe.
“Breakdown of the figure on a state-by-state basis revealed the following: Ondo (16), Lagos (16), Ekiti (1), Ogun (9), Oyo (8), Kogi (2), Edo (4), Delta (4), Osun (9), Benue (1), Kwara (2), Anambra (1), Akwa Ibom (1), and Rivers (1).”
He revealed that the agency had commenced moves to arrest the traffickers.
“It shows the collective efforts of both countries in providing better operational strategies to fight against human trafficking and migrants’ smuggling, which is now assuming alarming dimension globally, with higher prevalence among developing countries such as Nigeria and Niger,” the NAPTIP official added.
