Edo govt arrests suspected human traffickers

July 10, 2024

The Edo State Taskforce on Human Trafficking said on Wednesday it has arrested an alleged human trafficker, Juliet Ukhurebor, who the agency said specialises in compelling her victim to take an oath before trafficking abroad.

Speaking with journalists in Benin on the development, Secretary of the Taskforce, Mrs. Pauline Irusota, said Ukhurebor and one Joy Osawe were apprehended following a petition by one Rita Godwin, 25.

She stated that the prime suspect, Ukhurebor, in collaboration with her daughter in India, forged Ghanaian passports and other documents for their victims for the purpose of smuggling them to India and indeed succeeded in smuggling one of them, Juliet Osagie, to India.

Irusota stated that the prime suspect only revealed to the victims after the oath that they were heading to India for prostitution, adding that the petitioner, on learning of the development, refused to embark on the final journey to Abuja, en route to India.

“Following the refusal of the petitioner to travel to India, the prime suspect and a native doctor from Enugu State began issuing threats to the petitioner that she pay $8 million, which was the money used to process her travelling documents.

“The prime suspect was arrested at her shrine, and a native pot containing concoctions was recovered as an exhibit at the request of the investigators,” she added.

Confirming the position of Mrs Irusota, the 42-year-old Ukhurebor said she made her victims swear an oath before travelling out of the country in order to deter them from refusing to obey instructions.

The suspect said, “I acted on the instructions of my India-based daughter, who requested a female nanny from Nigeria.

“My daughter asked them to take an oath because she spent money on the would-be nannies’ travel documents so that they would not get there and abscond or refuse to pay her the expenses she incurs on their documents.”

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