The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) has arrested 17 foreign nationals suspected of belonging to a cyber fraud group and rescued 85 people believed to have been victims of human trafficking and forced labour in Dawhenya, Greater Accra.
The arrests followed an intelligence-led operation conducted in the early hours of Sunday, July 26, at a facility opposite the China West Mall. Authorities believe the premises served as a base for the suspected criminal network.
The GIS said its National Enforcement Team acted on information from residents and intercepted 102 West African nationals at the facility.
Initial investigations identified 79 men and six women as possible victims of human trafficking and forced labour. The remaining 17 people, all suspected members of the cyber fraud group, were also found to be staying in Ghana illegally.
Officers reportedly found signs of serious physical abuse at the facility. The GIS said some of the male victims had suffered violence and lived under harsh conditions.
The Service has taken the six female victims and the 17 suspects to its headquarters in Accra for questioning, profiling and further investigations. Authorities have moved the 79 male victims to a secure facility while arrangements are made with other state agencies to return them safely to their respective countries.
However, the suspected leaders of the operation were not at the premises when the immigration officers arrived.
“It is reported that the team met the absence of the main kingpins at the time of the operations. Investigations are ongoing to pick up the brains behind these nefarious activities,” the statement said.
The GIS said it carried out the operation under the Human Trafficking Act, 2005 (Act 694), which criminalises trafficking offences and provides for a minimum five-year prison sentence upon conviction.
Meanwhile, the Ashaiman Sector Command has detained 93 Nigerian women during a separate intelligence-led operation in the Tsina-Agbe area.
The women, aged between 15 and 44, were picked up following concerns from the Ashaiman Municipal Assembly and the Municipal Security Council over the alleged involvement of foreign nationals in prostitution.
The GIS said it is keeping the women at a secure facility while it works towards their repatriation to Nigeria in accordance with the law.
The Service said the latest operations form part of its wider efforts to tackle illegal migration, human trafficking and organised crime.
“The Ghana Immigration Service remains steadfast in its statutory mandate to safeguard Ghana’s borders, combat irregular migration, dismantle transnational criminal networks, and protect victims of human trafficking from exploitation,” the Service said.
