By Tricia Ikem
Two suspected human trafficking syndicate who recruited teenage girls from different part of Eastern State for prostitution have been arrested by operatives of the Lagos State Police Command.
The suspects, Ikechkwu Egbulefu and his girlfriend Vera John were arrested at their hideout at Wagbas Hotel Ajah, Lagos, where they camp the girls as sex slaves.
Helen Dickson (22yrs),Debora David (19yrs), and Chinwendu Oyekachi (19yrs) were all rescued at the hotel.
The victims who were recruited from their villages with a better job from their syndicate were taken to a shrine to took an oath of secrecy.
Integrity reporters learnt that the girls sleep with at least more than ten men Daily and deliver N25,000 -30 ,000 daily to their kingpin.
Lagos State Police Commissioner, CP Imohimi Edgal who paraded the suspects at the Command Headquarters in Ikeja disclosed that the suspects were arrested on July 1st 2018 at about 2pm.
Edgal said, ” the Command received an information that one Ikechkwu Egbulefu and Vera John are into human trafficking .
It was alleged that they are in the business of bringing young girls from States like Akwa-Ibom, Imo and Rivers States to Lagos State for prostitution.
” On the strength of the information, FSARS operatives were directed to investigate and arrest the suspects involved. Investigation led to the arrest of the suspects and the rescuing of the young girls who are their victims .
The victims confessed that the suspects lured them to Lagos with a promise of job . They also narrated that they were taken to a shrine in Ijebu-Ode and were made to swear an oath that they would not abscond from the hotel.
The painful aspect was that immediately we were done with any customer Aunty Vera is waiting at the door post to collect the proceed before another man would come into their hotel room.
One of the victim Oyekachi, said that Ikechukwu came to the village that there is new company in Lagos that is recruiting girls for employment as sales girls with good offer include accommodation.I did not know him before he was a friend to my cousin, it was that cosin of mine that advised me to go with Ikechukwu since there is accommodation. So when we got to Lagos, he told me a different story that it is prostitution he brought me to do. He handed me over to madam Vera and she took me and another girl to a shrine.
” The herbalist bath us with chicken blood and he cut our pubic hair and armpit hair. We swore to the oath that we will not run away and that if we do we should run mad. The herbalist gave us a black substance to eat and ordered us to sleep in a dark room for one night.
She claimed to have worked for two months, and made between have made between N300,000 to N400,000”. “I am begging I want to go back home, I can’t continue the prostitution work”.she appealed.
In his confessional statement, Ikechukwu Egbefu, 27years old, said that he has a plan to settle the girls after one year and travel abroad with whatever he was able to gather from the business. I was working with one construction company as an operator before the job stop last year, one of my friend introduced me into this business of bring girls from villages for prostitution work. ” I brought these girls to Lagos for prostitution two months ago . I knew Helen in Port Harcourt, she told me that her mother chased her away from home and that she needs a place to sleep. I bought food for her to eat.
” I told her that I will take her to Lagos where she can stay and start working. That was how she came to Lagos and I took her to my girlfriend Vera who kept her in a hotel for prostitution. We had plans to settle all the girls after one year and later I will travel out.”
The Commissioner of Police stated that the suspects will be charged to court at the completion of investigation.
