Twenty-two trafficked persons bound for Tripoli, Libya have been rescued in Niger Republic.
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in Sokoto revealed this on Tuesday.
Addressing journalists at the NAPTIP Zonal Command in Sokoto, Zonal Commander Abubakar Bashiru said the victims were between the ages of 15 to 20 years.
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He said the victims, mostly from the southern part of Nigeria, were intercepted in Niger Republic and repatriated to Nigeria by the Nigerian police who then handed them over to the officials of the Nigeria Immigration Service at the Illela border.
Mr. Bashiru said the victims were handed over to NAPTIP by the officials of the Nigeria Immigration Service at the Illela border.
He said NAPTIP has commenced investigation to find out the culprit responsible for the heinous crime against the victims.
He also expressed sadness that despite sensitizing the public against the danger of trafficking, parents of some of the victims in trafficking cases are always accomplices in committing the crime.
