A Federal High Court sitting in Kano has sentenced a 20-year-old woman, Faith Joseph, to four years imprisonment for trafficking a 21-year-old woman to Burkina Faso for prostitution.
Joseph, a resident of Panshekara, Mallam Sabo, New Abuja Quarters, Kano, was convicted on two counts of human trafficking and aiding illegal travel.
Delivering judgment, Justice M. N. Yunusa held that the prosecution had successfully proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. He sentenced Joseph to two years imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently, without the option of a fine.
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According to the prosecution counsel, Mr. Hassan Nuraddeen of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), the convict conspired with one Grace James, who is currently at large, to facilitate the illegal movement of the victim.
The court heard that the victim was transported from Kano through Lagos and Cotonou before being taken to Burkina Faso, where she was forced into prostitution.
Justice Yunusa, while passing sentence, warned that the court would not tolerate crimes that exploit vulnerable young women, emphasizing that human trafficking remains a serious offense under Nigerian law.
NAPTIP has since launched a manhunt for Grace James, who is believed to be the mastermind of the trafficking ring.