The Nigeria Immigration Service, Kano Command, has intercepted six victims of human trafficking and smuggling and illegal migration in the state.
Daily News 24 reports that the victims were en route to Libya “without proper travel documents.”
Their intent was to cross international borders in search of greener pastures.
The state Comptroller of Immigrations, Ahmad Bagari, disclosed this while briefing newsmen on the arrest at the Nigeria Immigration Service Command Headquarters in Kano.
He said: “The operation was carried out by the immigration operatives in adherence to the provisions laid out in sections 64, 65, and 100 of the Immigration Act 2015.
Our officers carried out a successful interception based on credible intelligence, which led to the apprehension of six female migrants and one suspected smuggler accomplice,” He added.
According to the Immigration boss, “the arrest was carried out on the 6th of August at approximately 1300 hours in Bachirawa Quarters”.
Human trafficking and smuggling have been crimes for many years in Nigeria as young men and women embark on an illegal journey in search of greener pastures abroad.
The Comptroller of the Kano Immigration Service is worried that the female victims were lured into a journey full of risks.
“Their safety and even their lives are often put at risk, they may suffocate in containers, perish in deserts, or drown at sea while being smuggled by profit seeking criminals who treat them as goods.” He said.
One of the victims (name withheld), who hailed from Lagos State, while narrating her ordeal, said, “I learned a skill, but nobody supported me. That is why. I also run a small business in Lagos, Nigeria. I used to sell fuel, but the hike in price distorted our business. That is why I wanted to go to Libya.”
Recall that in June 2023, Kano Immigration Command intercepted 18 illegal migrants in the state while on their way to Libya.
