The Oyo State Police Command has successfully rescued 84 Congolese nationals from a human trafficking network operating in Ibadan, the state capital.
The victims were reportedly confined for an unspecified period in a building situated in the Orogun area of Ibadan.
According to information obtained by Drivetvnews, the individuals were brought into Nigeria under false promises of employment opportunities. It was further revealed that the traffickers had collected substantial sums, allegedly in US dollars, from the victims’ families as part of a scheme to deceive them into traveling to Nigeria.
Footage shared by Channels TV showed the victims, among them a baby, being escorted into police vans and buses.
They have since been moved to the Police Headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan, where they remain while investigations are ongoing.
Efforts to get a statement from Adewale Osifeso, the Police Public Relations Officer for Oyo State, were unsuccessful, as calls and messages to his phone went unanswered at the time of reporting.