Operatives from Anambra State Police Command have burst a hotel in Awka where girls aged between 17 and 23 were being used as sex slaves.
A release by the Police Public Relations Officer, Tochukwu Ikenga, said the operation, which followed a credible tip-off from the Ministry of Women and Social Welfare, also led to the arrest of the proprietor of the hotel.
According to the statement, the girls, some teenagers, were brought to Anambra with assurances that they would be gainfully employed.
It reads in part, “Interrogations/confessions of the rescued girls revealed that the respective persons that brought them to the brothel lured/enticed them on the assurances of giving them jobs to alleviate poverty/needs of their parents and dependents.
“They further confessed to being taken from Ebonyi, Enugu, Akwa-Ibom, and Rivers States.”
The statement assured that the police, in collaboration with the ministry, would ensure that the girls are cared for and safely returned to their parents.
While condemning the act, the statement urges well-meaning citizens not to starve the police with credible information about such places as a joint operation to weed them out had commenced.
It adds that the case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for a comprehensive investigation.
Operatives from the Anambra State Police Command have raided a hotel in Awka where girls aged 17 to 23 were being used as sex slaves. The operation, prompted by a credible tip-off from the Ministry of Women and Social Welfare, also resulted in the arrest of the hotel's proprietor. The girls, some of whom are teenagers, were misled with promises of employment to alleviate poverty. They were brought from Ebonyi, Enugu, Akwa-Ibom, and Rivers States. The police, in cooperation with the ministry, have assured that the rescued girls will be cared for and safely returned to their parents. The public is urged to provide credible information to the police to facilitate joint operations aimed at eliminating such criminal activities. The case has been transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.
