Two Nigerian men have been sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment each by a Ghanaian court after they were convicted of tr@fficking fellow Nigerians into Ghana with fake job promises and forcing them into cybercrime.
The convicts, Kingsley Ndifon (29) and Emmanuel Akong (25), were found guilty of human tr@fficking and causing harm by Circuit Court ‘B’ in Tema following a full trial.
According to the Ghana Police Service, the pair lured Nigerians to Ghana under the pretext of securing employment. However, upon arrival, the victims were held captive, stripped of their phones and identity cards, and forced to carry out internet fr@ud using laptops supplied by the suspects.
The suspects were arrested on August 20, 2023, at Sebrepor, a suburb of Tema, after the Afienya District Police Command received a distress call reporting that several people were being held against their will. A police team, with the support of local residents, raided the location, rescued 11 Nigerian victims, and recovered 16 laptops and an iPad.
Investigations revealed that the victims were fed only once a day and subjected to severe ab¥se whenever they refused to comply. Police said they were beaten with laptop charging cables and machetes, leaving some with c¥tlass wounds, while many were found malnourished and in poor health.
The two men were charged with conspiracy to commit crime, human tr@fficking and causing harm. At the end of the trial, they were convicted of human tr@fficking and causing harm.
The court sentenced each defendant to 20 years in prison for human tr@fficking and 10 years for causing harm, with both sentences ordered to run concurrently, meaning each will serve 20 years behind bars.
