The Lagos State Police Command has detained six Liberian nationals in connection with an alleged human trafficking, abduction and fraudulent overseas relocation scheme.
The suspects, comprising five men and one woman between the ages of 21 and 40, were arrested in the Gberigbe area of Ikorodu, Lagos State.
They are accused of belonging to a syndicate that allegedly enticed Liberian nationals to Nigeria with false promises of visas, work permits and permanent residency opportunities in Canada and the United Kingdom.
According to information obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria, victims were allegedly made to pay large sums of money for travel arrangements that were never provided.
Following the initial report, Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Fatai Tijani, ordered the transfer of the case from the Imota Police Division to the State Criminal Investigation Department in Yaba.
The transfer was directed to allow for a more extensive investigation into the suspected international trafficking and visa fraud network.
A police source said the syndicate allegedly targeted unsuspecting people in Liberia with promises that their relocation documents would be processed after they arrived in Nigeria.
However, the victims reportedly discovered after reaching Lagos that no genuine visa or overseas travel arrangements had been made on their behalf.
The source alleged that the victims’ passports and other travel documents were confiscated shortly after their arrival in Nigeria.
They were reportedly lodged in a hotel for between two and three days before being transferred to a rented apartment in Ikorodu.
At the apartment, the victims were allegedly held against their will and pressured to bring additional people into the scheme.
According to the source, victims who had paid for relocation opportunities were instead introduced to a networking business and told to recruit others before they would be allowed to leave.
Police intervention reportedly followed a distress message sent by one of the victims after she realised that the promised trip to Canada was not genuine.
The woman was said to have contacted a man she met while travelling to Nigeria and sent him details of her location in Lagos.
The man subsequently alerted the police, leading officers to rescue the victim and arrest the six suspects.
The police source said the victim’s passport had allegedly been seized and that she had been compelled to participate in the recruitment operation.
The investigation is being conducted by the Delta Force Anti-Robbery Unit of the State Criminal Investigation Department.
The unit is operating under the supervision of the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of the department, Dayo Akinbisehin.
Police authorities said efforts were continuing to identify and apprehend other suspected members of the syndicate.
The six detained suspects are expected to be charged in court after the police conclude their investigation.
