General News of Saturday, 8 June 2024

Source: punchng.com

10 Nigerian teenagers trafficked to Ghana for prostitution rescued

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Nigerian authorities have rescued at least 10 Nigerian teenage girls, ages between 15 and 16, from human trafficking and prostitution.

The girls were reportedly lured to Ghana with promises of a better life but were instead forced into prostitution.

Three of the victims are from the same parents.

The suspect, a Nigerian man, has been arrested and is currently in police custody.

According to the Chairman of the Nigerian Diaspora Commission, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the girls were rescued after a tip-off by NIDO, the umbrella body of Nigerians living in Ghana.

The victims were said to have revealed that they were beaten, molested, and forced into prostitution without pay.

Their phones were reportedly seized, and they were unable to contact their parents.

One of the girls responding to questions said, โ€œThey give us out to men, and they donโ€™t give us money; they collect everything.โ€

The Chairman of NIDO, Chief Callistus Elozieuwa, appealed for support to ensure the girls' safe return to Nigeria.

Dabiri-Erewa called on the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons to take decisive action, describing the situation as "very, very heartbreaking."