Thirty-four Ghanaians have been returned to Accra after an operation targeting an alleged travel scam in Anyigba, Kogi State, Nigeria.
They were handed over to Ghana’s police Anti-Human Trafficking Unit for investigation after being brought home from the camps.
The operation was conducted by Black Angels PI, GHOne TV and the police Anti-Human Trafficking Unit, with support from the Kogi State Vigilante Service, according to Starr FM.
The team searched three camps in Anyigba. During a raid on Friday night, it found 33 Ghanaians, including 12 women. Starr FM identified Iddrisa Ishahu as the alleged leader of the camp.
The Comptroller of the Kogi State Command later brought one additional Ghanaian woman to the group, taking the total number rescued to 34. Those involved included nurses, mechanics, cocoa farmers and teachers.
They had reportedly been promised travel to Belgium, Britain, France and Canada. One person told the rescue team they had paid GH¢300,000 for a Belgian opportunity, Starr FM reported.
The operation follows an earlier case in Ogun State, where police said 11 Ghanaians were freed in October. Each had allegedly paid GH¢40,000 after being promised visas for Canada and Spain.
GHOne TV reported on September 26 that people at the Anyigba camp said they had travelled to take part in network marketing and were not being taken abroad illegally. Some reportedly said they had paid as much as GH¢300,000.
However, a later account by Starr FM said interviewees alleged that recognised marketing platforms were being used as a cover. The station noted that this claim had not been independently established.
The Ghana Police Service said in 2025 that 76 Ghanaians had been removed from recruitment camps in Nigeria during investigations linked to QNET.
The Anyigba operation was followed by a dispute after Kogi immigration officers were asked to screen those rescued. Members of the operation team were held at a migrant centre in Abuja for nearly three weeks, according to Starr FM.
The station reported that Ghana’s High Commissioner to Nigeria, Baba Sadiq Abdulai Abu, intervened over the detention. Relatives, EIB management and the Inspector-General of Police were also involved.
By Saturday morning, no statement on the operation had been issued by the Ghana Police Service, NAPTIP or the Kogi State Police Command.
Ghanaian authorities have repeatedly warned that fake job offers and recruitment agents can be used to draw people into trafficking networks.
Mark Asamoah-Boakye, Aflao Sector Commander of the Ghana Immigration Service, issued a similar warning to the Ghana News Agency in August.
“Anything that you want to know about a recruitment agency or the genuineness of an offer, you need to validate it before you take a step,” he said.
Licensed private employment agencies are listed by the Labour Department on the Ghana Labour Market Information System.
Mr Asamoah-Boakye also advised people to verify any request to pay money into a mobile-money wallet and to check offers involving travel through Nigeria at the nearest Immigration office.
