NAPTIP receives 231 repatriated Nigerians from Ghana after major anti-trafficking operation

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has taken custody of 231 Nigerians repatriated from Ghana, including 27 individuals suspected of involvement in human trafficking.

The group was officially handed over to NAPTIP and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) by Ghanaian authorities through the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), following a large-scale crackdown on a cybercrime and human trafficking network.

The repatriation, which took place on the evening of Thursday, April 24, came in the aftermath of a major raid on a fortified estate in Ghana, where the trafficking ring was allegedly operating.

Among those returned were four women believed to have been trafficked, while the majority were young men.

Many of the returnees were reportedly held in captivity for extended periods and coerced into participating in online fraud schemes orchestrated by the criminal syndicate.

At the handover ceremony held at NAPTIP’s Lagos Zonal Command in Ikeja, EOCO representative Dominic Mensah shared details of the operation, codenamed Operation Rescue Shield.

He said the bust followed actionable intelligence concerning suspicious activities across 26 properties within a single estate.

Dominic Meza, an officer with EOCO’s Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, explained that the agency was tipped off on March 28 by an informant who reported that a group of Nigerians was exploiting young people for cybercrime.

“After conducting surveillance, a coordinated raid was carried out at 3:30 a.m. last week with support from national security and police forces,” Meza said. “A total of 233 individuals were apprehended during the operation.”

According to Meza, many victims had been lured to Ghana with promises of legitimate employment but were later held against their will and forced into cybercriminal activities.

NAPTIP has assured that thorough investigations will be conducted to identify and prosecute those involved in the trafficking network, while efforts are underway to support and rehabilitate the victims.