NAPTIP dismantles Nigeria-Iraq trafficking ring, rescues 13 victims

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has intercepted 13 young women at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, preventing their trafficking to Baghdad, Iraq, for sexual and labor exploitation.

Director-General of NAPTIP, Binta Bello, disclosed this in a statement issued by the agency’s press officer, Vincent Adekoye, on Monday.

According to Bello, the victims, aged between 19 and 39, were allegedly recruited by unregistered labor recruiters suspected to be part of a larger criminal syndicate operating between Nigeria and several Middle Eastern countries. These recruiters deceived the victims with false job offers, but their plan was thwarted when NAPTIP operatives intervened at the airport.

“We are seriously worried by the activities of unregistered labor recruiters in Nigeria,” she said.

The interception of the Iraq-bound girls followed a tip-off by concerned partners who noticed unusual movements of unknown individuals at the departure lounge of the airport, accompanied by timid-looking girls who all gave the same answers to different questions about their destination. The partners immediately alerted the agency, the statement said.

Bello called on parents and guardians to always be cautious of fake promises made to their children and wards by friends and relatives.

“From the testimonies of scores of victims who passed through the same condition, they were never paid regularly as expected—maybe four or five months only for the agreed contract period of two years. In fact, the major issue with their masters is when they ask for their salary to be paid,” she lamented.

“It is painful that while an unspecified number of victims are in those volatile and war-torn destination countries seeking help to be rescued, others are happily embarking on a journey to the unknown.

“We are seriously worried about the situation because some who were rescued recently came home with life-threatening medical conditions, while others escaped with life-threatening wounds and everlasting scars inflicted on them by their masters.

“I wish to point out that our action is in line with the provisions of the Trafficking in Persons (Control of Activities of Organizations and Centres) Regulations 2019, which empowers NAPTIP to issue clearance certificates to all travel agents or tour operators and intending travelers for the purpose of educational excursions, recruitment for labor, sporting activities, cultural or music excursions or competitions, as well as all organizations, shelters, and homes offering services for the rehabilitation of trafficked persons.”

She stressed that the agency’s action aligns with the Trafficking in Persons (Control of Activities of Organizations and Centres) Regulations 2019, which mandates NAPTIP to issue clearance certificates to all travel agents, tour operators, and intending travelers for specific purposes, including labor recruitment and rehabilitation of trafficked persons.

“The case at hand is pathetic because these girls were deceived and recruited for a supposed job in Baghdad by unlicensed labor recruiters who are not known to any constituted authority in Nigeria. This implies that should anything happen to these girls, we will not be able to hold anyone responsible because they are undocumented laborers. Also, they were issued 60-day visas yet signed a labor agreement of two years. The implication of this is that as soon as the visa expires, they are at the mercy of their master and lose all legal rights to demand anything, including their legitimate salary.

“Investigation revealed that they will be paid a sum of $250 as a monthly salary by their taskmaster, out of which they will remit four months’ salary to the agent here in Nigeria and another huge sum to the agent in Iraq.

“We cannot close our eyes and allow these ones to join the statistics of stranded victims who are calling for help on social media. We are also on the lookout for the unscrupulous unregistered recruiters behind these activities.”

She commended security officers and the management of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, particularly the airport manager, security personnel, and officials of various airlines, who provided assistance to NAPTIP, leading to the success of the intervention.

Similarly, operatives of the agency have sealed off a popular three-star hotel located in a busy community in Kwali, Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, over the suspected sexual exploitation of 11 minors who were later rescued.

According to NAPTIP, luck, however, ran out on the owner of the hotel, as she was arrested while other supporting staff escaped.

This development comes barely one month after NAPTIP officers busted a private apartment located inside one of the highbrow estates in the heart of Abuja, rescuing nine pregnant girls suspected to be victims of human trafficking.