Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Gabriel Osa
Security forces in Ondo State have recorded a significant operational breakthrough in the fight against transnational human trafficking, rescuing 14 victims and detaining six suspects connected to an international trafficker network operating within the state. The arrests and rescues followed intelligence-led interventions by the Ondo State Police Command after a survivor escaped and reported the criminal ring to authorities in Akure.
The incident began on January 22, 2026, when a Togolese national, identified as Meale Yaoili, walked into the Yaba Police Station in Ondo City after fleeing from what he described as a trafficking syndicate. Yaoili told investigators he had been lured from the Republic of Togo to Nigeria with assurances of legitimate employment opportunities in Canada. According to his account, the individual who recruited him, Tchodia Potolaw Fidel — now at large — falsely claimed there was no Canadian embassy in Togo and convinced him to make the journey. Upon arrival in Nigeria, Yaoili said he was dispossessed of his personal belongings, detained against his will and coerced into paying 800,000 CFA francs under duress.
Prompt action by police operatives led to the arrest of six suspects believed to be directly involved in the human trafficking operation. The detained individuals were named as Cleude Grao, Samuel Dsiwa, Michael Amissa, Olayiwola Kazeem, Akinubi Adebayo and Oluwole Vincent, the landlord of the premises where the victims were held. Three victims were freed during this raid.
In parallel with this breakthrough, officers uncovered another trafficking network the following day, on January 23, after an unrelated report to the Oba-Ile Divisional Headquarters initially cited suspected banditry. Investigations by the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) revealed that the matter instead involved illegal immigrants from the Republic of Chad who were being held in a duplex apartment in the OSOPADEC area of Akure.
Police subsequently determined that the key suspect in this secondary network, Umaru Baba, was allegedly at the centre of trans-border criminal activity that included recruitment, trafficking in persons and modern-day slavery. Authorities say Baba used the guise of an online marketing company to lure and harbour eleven able-bodied men and one woman — all Chadian nationals — with promises of commission-based work opportunities, only to traffic them towards Nigeria’s border with Cameroon. These individuals are now being treated as victims of trafficking rather than suspects.
The combined efforts of investigators culminated in the rescue of a total of 14 victims across the two cases. Police confirmed that the rescued individuals include both West African and Chadian nationals who had been deceived and exploited by traffickers operating across national borders. The victims are to be handed over to their respective embassies for diplomatic care and eventual repatriation.
The Commissioner of Police in Ondo State, Adebowale Lawal, has warned property owners and landlords of the legal repercussions of negligence that allows criminal elements to use their premises for trafficking and related offences. Lawal emphasised that failure to conduct proper background checks on tenants or to report suspicious activity could attract prosecution under Nigerian law.
Authorities have stressed that the fight against human trafficking remains a priority and reiterated commitments to dismantling syndicates that exploit vulnerable populations through deceptive recruitment, coercion and forced labour. Investigations into the operations and traceable networks of the suspects remain ongoing, with efforts underway to apprehend any additional perpetrators who may be at large.
The development underscores continuing challenges that law enforcement faces in curtailing transnational crime syndicates that leverage porous borders and fraudulent employment schemes to traffic individuals across West and Central Africa. Nigeria, as a key regional transit and destination country, continues to grapple with both domestic and cross-border human trafficking and modern-slavery practices, prompting intensified collaboration between police, immigration services and international agencies aimed at prevention, protection and prosecution.
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