The Delta State Police Command has arrested two suspected human traffickers over the alleged trafficking of a 16-year-old girl from Delta State to Mali, where she was reportedly forced into prostitution.

The case came to light after the teenager returned to Nigeria and the police commenced investigations into how she was taken out of the country.

According to the police account, the girl was initially approached by a woman who was known to her family and was reportedly promised an opportunity to work in Lagos for about ₦200,000 monthly.

The teenager said she wanted to return home to inform her mother before leaving, but the woman allegedly persuaded her to travel, assuring her that she would be able to contact her mother by phone after reaching Lagos.

She was subsequently taken from Summit in Asaba to Lagos without her mother’s knowledge.

The police said the girl was received by a man in Lagos, but instead of being taken to a legitimate workplace as promised, she was allegedly handed over to another group of people who later moved her across the border to Mali.

The teenager gave a disturbing account of what happened after she arrived in Mali. She alleged that she was injected with an unknown substance and subsequently forced into prostitution.

She further alleged that she was made to have sex with about 20 men daily and was given the name “Sexy” while in Mali. She said she was paid about CFA 2,000 and repeatedly told those holding her that she did not want to engage in prostitution, but was not allowed to leave.

The female suspect, identified during the police interview as Chidinma, reportedly admitted that she knew the teenager and described her as her neighbour. Police are investigating how she became involved in taking the girl to Lagos and her subsequent movement out of Nigeria.

The case highlights the dangers faced by young Nigerians who are lured across borders with promises of legitimate employment. Recent cases involving Nigerian girls rescued from Mali and other West African countries have similarly involved promises of jobs in boutiques, restaurants, domestic services and other businesses before the victims were subjected to sexual exploitation.

In another recent case, NAPTIP received four trafficking victims repatriated from Mali, alongside four young girls intercepted while travelling towards Burkina Faso. The victims were aged between 15 and 22, underscoring the vulnerability of young people to cross-border trafficking networks.

The latest case has again raised concerns about the use of trusted relationships to lure young people into trafficking. Human rights investigations have documented cases in which traffickers use friends, relatives, neighbours and other people known to victims to gain their trust before transporting them across borders for sexual or labour exploitation.