Interpol, in conjunction with local police have rescued 216 victims of human trafficking in Benin and Nigeria, mainly children, from forced labour and prostitution.
Operation Epervier II, which was carried out in early April involved 100 local police officers from the two countries, they rescued 157 child slaves, many of whom were in the market carrying heavy loads and fetching water, among the minors, 36 were boys and 121 were girls.
Interpol’s director of organized and emerging crime, Paul Stanfield, assured that investigations are underway to dismantle the crime networks active in Benin and Nigeria, which are source, transit and destination countries for human trafficking.
“This is about organized crime groups who are motivated by money. It is challenging (to stop them) in the region because of lack of resources,” Stanfield told the Thomson Reuters Foundation, adding that countries are nonetheless becoming better equipped and more prepared.
Police arrested 47 suspected traffickers, and seized possessions which they believe contribute to the operation such as cash, cars, phones and computers. According to Interpol, the operation is not limited to markets, but also airports, seaports and other border areas.
Comptroller of Nigeria’s Immigration Service in the Seme border region, Dominic Asogwa, said in a statement “These crimes can only be tackled collectively and through interagency cooperation,”
“Interpol will continue working to identify hot spots for modern slavery in West Africa with a focus on mobilizing countries to address the issue themselves. I think we’ll be here for the long-term, but we don’t want to be in charge of leading it,” Stanfield said.