Traffickers now target youths with IT skills — NAPTIP

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons has rescued and repatriated 23 Nigerian youths suspected to be victims of human trafficking from Thailand.

The Director-General of NAPTIP, Binta Adamu Bello, disclosed this on Wednesday while alerting the public to a new trend of trafficking to the South Asia region for cyber-enabled crimes.

The Head of Press and Public Relations Unit of NAPTIP, Vincent Adekoye, conveyed the development in a statement titled ‘DG NAPTIP alerts on new trend of trafficking to the South Asia region for cyber-enabled crimes as the agency rescues 23 victims from Thailand.’

According to the statement, the operation was carried out with the support and collaboration of Eden (Myanmar), with critical assistance from the British Government.

The victims, who have arrived in Nigeria, were deceived, recruited, and trafficked to Southeast Asian countries like Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia for cyber-enabled crimes such as romance scams, cryptocurrency-related fraud, and investment scams.

Speaking on the nature of the exploitation, Bello called for collaboration among all stakeholders.

“This is a new dimension of the human trafficking phenomenon that targets vibrant and intelligent Nigerians.