The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, Rivers State, said it has arrested one Blessing Iniedem for allegedly forcing a 15-year-old girl into prostitution at a brothel in the Mile Three axis of Port Harcourt, the state capital.
The state NAPTIP Commander, Amaka Ikediashi, told newsmen that Iniedem, who reportedly owned the brothel, brought the teenager from Akwa Ibom State under the guise of taking her on holiday.
“The victim in question is 16-year-old. She was brought from Oron, Akwa Ibom State, to Rivers State, for forced prostitution by a certain Miss Blessing Iniedem, aka Patience, at a brothel.
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“The suspect, Blessing Iniedem told her that she was taken for holiday and on getting to Rivers State, she was forced into prostitution.
“When we were notified, alongside our major stakeholders, we had to carry out the arrest and pick up the suspect, Miss Iniedem, her (the teenager’s) exploiter and trafficker.”
Asked what the agency would do with the suspect, Ikediashi said, “Definitely, NAPTIP is going to prosecute her because it is a case of forced sexual exploitation.”
She also spoke on efforts being made to clamp down on those involved in the illicit act or sexual exploitation.
“This is part of sensitization. We keep telling people to be very cautious, we keep telling people to desist from this act of exploitative means.
“And also acts of sexual exploitation and human trafficking. If you have somebody that you employed under you, try as much as possible to take care of the person.
“If you know you are not ready and willing, you take the person back, because it is human trafficking when you exploit people, especially when you give me their work that is very hazardous to their health.
“NAPTIP is watching and also we have our informants notifying us of activities of these people.”
On her part, the chairperson, International Federation of Women Lawyers in Rivers State, Adata Bio-Briggs, expressed sadness over the development’.
Bio-Briggs said the teenager was first taken to a brothel in Gbundu, a popular waterfront in Port Harcourt, but was rejected because the facility term her to be too small.
“The first brothel they took her to was in Gbudu. And in Gbundu they rejected her that she was too small.
“They now took her to a brothel in Mile three and they took (accepted) her there. And she told me that they put her in a house, gave her one lady that the lady was her madam.
“And this lady collects N500 from the men that sleep with her. And its been ongoing for a while, and she told herself that she could not take it anymore she wanted to go home” Adata-Bio-Briggs explained bitterly.
