The Ondo State Police Command has apprehended suspected human traffickers and rescued 14 victims in different operations carried out across the state.
This was disclosed in a statement released on Saturday by the command’s Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abayomi Jimoh.
The statement said the arrests were the outcome of intelligence-driven operations targeted at tackling human trafficking and other fraud-related offences in Ondo State.
“In a sustained effort to curb human trafficking and other fraud-related crimes, the Ondo State Police Command has recorded a major operational success with the arrest of suspected human traffickers and the rescue of 14 victims in Ondo State,” the statement said.
It explained that on Thursday, January 22, 2026, a Togolese citizen, Meale Yaoili, reported at the Yaba Police Station after escaping from a human trafficking ring operating in Nigeria.
The victim said he was deceived into travelling from the Republic of Togo to Nigeria on the promise of securing a job in Canada.
“According to the victim, he knew one Tchodia Potolaw Fidel, now at large, since 2019, who claimed to be residing in Canada,” the statement said.
The police added that the suspect allegedly persuaded him to come to Nigeria, claiming there was no Canadian Embassy in Togo.
“Upon his arrival, the victim’s personal belongings were forcefully seized, and he was held against his will after paying the sum of 800,000 CFA francs,” the police said.
Acting on the report, police operatives arrested six suspects — Cleude Grao, Samuel Dsiwa, Michael Amissa, Olayiwola Kazeem, Akinubi Adebayo, and Oluwole Vincent, who was identified as the landlord of the property where the operation was allegedly carried out.
Three victims were rescued during the operation, the police said.
In a separate case, the command disclosed that a report initially filed as suspected banditry was made on January 23, 2026, by Chief Ojomu of Oba-Ile at the Oba-Ile Divisional Headquarters against Umaru Baba and 11 others.
“The case was subsequently transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) for discreet investigation,” the statement said.
Investigations later showed that the suspects were not bandits, but illegal immigrants from the Republic of Chad living in a duplex apartment around the OSOPADEC area of Akure.
“Further intelligence uncovered that Umaru Baba is allegedly at the centre of trans-border criminal activities, including recruitment, trafficking in persons, modern-day slavery, and other related offences,” the police said.
The statement noted that findings revealed the principal suspect allegedly posed as a representative of an online marketing company and used the platform to recruit and shelter eleven able-bodied men and one woman under the guise of commission-based marketing.
“All eleven persons were discovered to be Chadian nationals illegally transported into Nigeria en route the Cameroon border,” the statement said.
The police said the suspects remain in custody, while the foreign nationals identified are being treated as victims of human trafficking.
It added that attempts to gain access to the premises were initially unsuccessful and that the landlord, a female resident of Ibadan, is being sought for questioning over alleged negligence.
“The suspects in both cases have made useful statements explaining their respective roles in the offence,” the statement said, adding that investigations are ongoing to arrest other suspects who are still at large.
The command said the rescued victims would be handed over to their respective embassies for diplomatic engagement and repatriation.
The Commissioner of Police, Adebowale Lawal, cautioned landlords and property owners to carry out thorough background checks on tenants and remain alert.
“He stressed that negligence would attract legal consequences,” the statement said.
Lawal also reaffirmed the command’s resolve to fight human trafficking and trans-border crimes and urged members of the public to provide credible information to support security efforts in the state.