The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, has successfully disrupted organised human trafficking activities and rescued 25 victims in Abuja.
The victims, predominantly women, aged between 17 and 43, were intercepted while preparing to travel to Saudi Arabia under the false promise of lucrative domestic work.
According to NAPTIP’s Press Officer, Vincent Adekoye, “the unsuspecting victims were picked up in front of a popular hotel in Wuse II, Abuja, where they had gathered awaiting further instructions from traffickers. The agency revealed that the traffickers lured the women from Kano, Jigawa, and Katsina States, offering them jobs as domestic workers in Saudi Arabia.”
One victim narrated, “Some people came to our village and told my parents they would help me travel abroad to work as a house help in Saudi Arabia. They assured us that the job would pay well, but we were never given travel documents like passports or visas.”
The incident follows an earlier directive by NAPTIP’s Director General, Binta Adamu Bello, who mandated intensified monitoring across state capitals in response to the surge in human trafficking activities.
Renewed surveillance and stakeholder collaboration
The latest rescue is part of NAPTIP’s renewed surveillance and strengthened collaboration with other law enforcement agencies and partners. Bello noted that human trafficking syndicates now exploit Abuja as a centralised coordination hub for their operations.
She stated, “I wish to alert our partners and stakeholders to the new modus operandi of trafficking gangs that use Abuja as a muster point. Just months ago, victims were rescued near the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport. Now, we have intercepted another 25 women.”
Human trafficking activities
Bello emphasised that the victims, most of whom were visiting Abuja for the first time, were vulnerable and misled by traffickers. Many were stranded, waiting for documents that never arrived.
The DG assured the public that NAPTIP is closing in on a prominent travel agency allegedly linked to the illegal recruitment and trafficking process. “We have successfully disrupted this trafficking process, and we are intensifying the manhunt for those responsible,” she said.
NAPTIP issues strong warning to travel agencies
In a stern message, Bello called on the umbrella body of travel agencies, the Association of Recruiters, Licensed Placement Agency of Nigeria, and other regulatory authorities to regulate their members and curb human trafficking.
She said, “The exploitation of victims in destination countries remains a grave concern. The umbrella body of travel agents must call its members to order. Nigerians must no longer be deceived into dangerous journeys.”
NAPTIP stressed that the agency remains committed to protecting vulnerable citizens and dismantling trafficking syndicates. The agency also reminded stakeholders of Nigeria’s legal obligations under the UN Convention against Transnational Organised Crime and other international protocols.
