The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) says it discovered “new” techniques used recently by human trafficking cartels to entice victims for various sorts of exploitation.
In a statement issued on Sunday, NAPTIP stated that the cartels are leveraging synchronised worldwide brand trademarks with unrealistic job offers in oil and gas to traffic gullible youths and other classes of people to neighbouring West African countries for various forms of exploitation.
The Agency stated that the targeted demographic consists of males and females aged 15 to 35, who are typically trafficked through the waterways of Ode Jetty in Lagos en route to Benin Republic and other parts of the West African region, with some victims also trafficked via land routes.
The statement, signed by Adekoye Vincent, NAPTIP Communication Officer, stated that NAPTIP Director General, Prof. Fatima Waziri-Azi, was concerned about the situation and warned Nigerians not to fall into the trap of traffickers.
She stated that the new discovery was part of the developing trends in human trafficking for 2024, which prompted the decision to raise the alarm and inform Nigerians about the style of operations.
She said: “As part of our comprehensive enlightenment strategies to equip Nigerians with timely and accurate information to reduce their vulnerability, we have received reports indicating that traffickers have adopted new tactics to lure unsuspecting victims to Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Liberia, and other West African nations under the guise of lucrative employment opportunities in gold mining and oil companies.
“Victims are enticed with promises of monthly income as high as $900.00, which, as always, are not true. Victims are often instructed to bring up to N850,000 for documentation and other logistical expenses. But upon arrival at their destination, traffickers confiscate the money, along with the victims’ phones and other personal belongings.”
The NAPTIP boss appealed to Nigerians to always exercise caution, ask questions, and seek a second opinion before accepting any tempting offers, locally and internationally, and not allow desperation to cloud their judgment.
She restated that NAPTIP has redoubled its efforts through enhanced partnership, collaboration, diligent prosecution, and extensive awareness campaigns, aimed at bolstering its operations, resulting in a significant increase in convictions of human traffickers.