Human Trafficking Victim Rescued at Abuja Airport

One of the 24 victims rescued by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, has alleged that her own father lured her into trafficking.

NAPTIP confirmed the arrest of five suspected traffickers during the six-hour operation at the airport.

The victim said her father had convinced her that his friend had secured a supermarket job for her in Baghdad, leading her to believe she was on the path to a better life until NAPTIP intervened and rescued her.

“My father told me that his friend has a job for me at a supermarket in Baghdad. He did not tell me that it is in Iraq,” she narrated.

“I know that Iraq is not a good place to work for now due to the crisis there, but I did not know that Baghdad is in Iraq. I thank the DG and her officers for rescuing me.

Director-General of NAPTIP, Binta Bello, who led a high-powered special operation team to the airport following a tip-off, revealed that among the suspected human traffickers arrested was a retired senior uniformed officer with one of the foremost law enforcement agencies in Nigeria, who is alleged to be a prominent member of the trafficking syndicate operating within the South West region of Nigeria.