Libyan authority arrests driver for smuggling six Nigerian women

Libyan Police officers have apprehended a motorist in the Bishr district of Libya for attempting to snuggle six unregistered Nigerian women.

Migrant Rescue Watch, a migrant monitoring NGO, announced this in a post on its official X account on Wednesday.

According to the post, the driver, who was stopped while on a regular police patrol, claimed that the women were family members to avoid imprisonment.

However, officials saw through the ploy and arrested both the driver and the six women.

The statement reads: "Libya 05.08.24 - Police patrols captured a Libyan driver in the Bishr region for attempting to smuggle six illegal female #migrants of Nigerian nationality.

“The driver claimed that the female passengers were his family. All transferred to the Bishr Police Dept. for legal action.”

Meanwhile, Abike Olonade, a middle-aged lady, has been detained on suspicion of trafficking a 16-year-old student into Libya.

Allnews.ng gathered that the victim, whose identity has been withheld, attends Adeoye Lambo Secondary School in Obada Oko, Ogun State.

The arrest was verified in a statement made in Abeokuta on Saturday by police spokesperson Omolola Odutola. According to Odutola, the suspect admitted to trafficking the victim into Libya.

“One Abike Olonade has been arrested for trafficking a 16-year-old student of Ademoye Lambo Secondary School in Obada Oko Ogun State. She confessed that the victim has been trafficked to Libya,” the statement reads.

As the crackdown on human trafficking gains momentum in Nigeria, the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, has empowered three survivors of human trafficking in Edo State through an empowerment program held in Benin.

Nduka Nwanwenene, the Commander of NAPTIP’s Zonal office, announced during the program that the beneficiaries had completed their training at NAPTIP’s skill acquisition centre.

They received training in fashion and design, hairdressing, and catering, and have been certified ready to establish their businesses.

Nwanwenene emphasized that the beneficiaries had endured various forms of exploitation before being rescued by NAPTIP.

The empowerment initiative aims to provide them with sustainable means of livelihood, thereby reducing their vulnerability to trafficking in the future.