A Nigerian human trafficking ring leader, Chukwudi Nwachukwu, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labour after it was affirmed that he was involved in the trafficking of Nigerian girls to Ghana.
The Ghana Achimota Circuit Court, presided over by Justice Akosua Anokyewaa Adjepong, sentenced the Nigerian trafficker for the offence.
Reacting to the judgment, Chairman/CEO of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, applauded Justice Adjepong after months of painstaking investigations and surveillance.
It would be recalled that early this year, 10 girls were rescued by the Nigerians in Diaspora Organization (NIDO), Ghana Chapter.
The rescue of the girls was led by the NIDO Board Chairman, Chief Callistus Elozieuwa; Nigerian High Commission, Ghana; and Ghana security agencies.
They were safely brought back home courtesy of NiDCOM, led by Dabiri-Erewa; and a delegation of the Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, led by the Deputy Speaker, Hon Amara Chyna Iwuanyanwu, who represents Nwangele State Constituency.
In a statement issued by Gabriel Odu of the Media, Public Relations, and Protocols Unit of NiDCOM, Dabiri-Erewa believes that justice has been served at last.
The Circuit Court also ruled that the convict must pay restitution in the sum of GHc 15,000 to each of the 10 victims.
The trafficking ring leader was involved in the procurement of 10 young Nigerian girls between the ages of 15 and 18 to Ghana and coercing them into prostitution.
The 10 girls, who were handed over to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, (NAPTIP), have been fully reintegrated and reunited with their families.
Dabiri-Erewa once again urged parents and guardians to be more vigilant in the upbringing and whereabouts of their wards, adding that human traffickers will be brought to book no matter how long it takes.