Since April, immigration has freed 716 people who were being trafficked in Katsina, according to the Comptroller.

In Jibia, Katsina State, the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) Special Border Command has freed no fewer than 716 victims of human trafficking.

In a statement made on Monday at the Jibia border while turning over some of the victims to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, Mr. Kelechi Ekeoba-Jones, the command’s comptroller (NAPTIP).

Ekeoba-Jones revealed that 716 victims had been saved since April 14 to the present, and that 10 of them had been saved most recently.

He explained that the 10 victims were stopped while traveling to Europe via the Niger Republic and Libya on the Daura-Kongolon road.

He claims that throughout the time period under consideration, the command also repatriated over 350 Nigerians who had entered Nigeria erroneously and without the required documentation.

“Since April 24, when I took over as the Jibia special border command’s controller, the command has turned over 716 victims of human trafficking to NAPTIP. 229 men and 487 women made up the victims.

The most recent 10 victims were stopped on November 10 at around 7:00 p.m. as they were about to exit the nation via Libya and the Niger Republic on their way to Europe illegally, he said.

The comptroller claims that the victims who were saved attempted to travel from Kano to the Niger Republic via the Daura-Kongolam axis, but a NIS patrol team that was informed of their route stopped them.

“However, upon spotting our officers present, the driver made an attempt to elude capture by speeding up and weaving through the underbrush, which led to an accident in which some survivors had minor injuries.

The driver is still being admitted, but the injured victims have already received medical attention at the General Hospital Daura, the speaker continued.

According to Ekeoba-Jones, the 10 victims who were saved were three men and seven women, all of whom were between the ages of 17 and 36. They were from the states of Ondo, Imo, Osun, Ekiti, and Edo.

None of the victims had legitimate travel documents when they were seized by the NIS agents, claims the comptroller.

Since April, immigration has freed 716 people who were being trafficked in Katsina, according to the Comptroller.