Nigerian police dismantled a human trafficking syndicate in Nasarawa State, rescuing 30 Malian nationals and arresting 13 suspects linked to the criminal network.
The Nigeria Police Force has uncovered a suspected human trafficking syndicate operating across the Federal Capital Territory and neighbouring states, rescuing 30 Malian nationals held under exploitative conditions in Nasarawa State.
Operatives of the Intelligence Response Team conducted coordinated raids on May 7 at locations in the Mararaba and Karu areas, arresting 13 suspects including alleged syndicate leader Abdul Ngaki.
Force spokesman Anthony Placid said the syndicate lured vulnerable youths with promises of employment and European migration, collecting transportation fees before confining victims in residential hideouts.
In a particularly disturbing twist, victims who ran out of money were allegedly forced into staged kidnapping schemes, instructed to falsely tell relatives they had been abducted while ransom payments were routed to syndicate accounts.
“Acting on credible intelligence, operatives of the Intelligence Response Team carried out coordinated operations which led to the rescue of thirty victims, all identified as Malian nationals, and the arrest of thirteen suspects directly linked to the operation,” the police statement read. Efforts to track remaining suspects are ongoing.
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