The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has arrested six persons, including a 25-year old Rita Ani, based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for trafficking in young girls.
Mr Josiah Emerole, Head, Press and Public Relations of NAPTIP, made this known in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday.
Emerole said that the suspects usually move their victims from Nigeria to UAE to engage in forced prostitution.
According to him, Ani belongs to a group of Nigerian traffickers based in Abu Dhabi, engaging Nigerian girls in international prostitution in that country.
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He said that the five others arrested were Rita Ani’s elder sister, Ngozi Ani from Enugu State, Ozigi Abdulkarim from Kogi and Princewill James from Bayelsa.
Other suspects are Benson Emmanuel from Rivers and Philip Joshua from Bayelsa.
Emereole said that the suspects were arrested by the operatives of NAPTIP in two operations at Gwarimpa Abuja and Ibadan in Oyo State.
He said that Rita, who recently returned to the country for her traditional marriage, preparatory to moving to the UK with her fiance, was arrested in Ibadan by NAPTIP’s Rapid Response Squad (NAPTIP-RRS).
Emereole said the atrocities of the suspects were revealed when one of them returned from Abu Dhabi after four months of forced prostitution.
He said that the returnee mentioned flogging and insertion of boiling ring into her private part.
“This was meted on her whenever she did not make enough money daily, while the proceeds of the prostitution would be forcefully collected by Rita,’’ Emereole said.
He said that others were associates of the gang who played one role or the other in moving the victims.
Emereole said that during investigation, the suspects made very useful statements, saying that one of them also confessed she had more girls working for her in the UAE.
He said that they would be charged to court as soon as investigation is concluded.
According to him, the Director-General of NAPTIP, Ms Julie Okah-Donli, has commended the operatives for breaking into the network, warning that no human trafficker would go unpunished in the country.
He said that the NAPTIP boss had made it clear that the agency was more than ready to smoke out the traffickers wherever they may be hiding