Nigerian sex slave syndicate exposed

Police arrested some 35 Nigerian teenagers and their agents in the Guinean capital, Conakry, on Thursday, news organisations reported. The girls, who were about to be taken to Europe to work as sex slaves, were alleged to have been offered between 20,000 naira and 200,000 naira (US $178 and $1,779) by an 18-man syndicate with the promise of good jobs in Europe, a Lagos newspaper, ‘This Day’, reported. The agents usually take the girls to Guinea via Mali where false Guinean passports are bought using fictitious Guinean names, the daily reported Guinean police Lieutenant Mouctar Sako as saying. They are then returned to Mali where they are sold to other syndicates that transport them to Europe, generally Italy and Spain, Sacko said. Recruitment of teenagers as sex slaves often starts with the tempting offer of employment overseas. After recruitment they face long, tortuous journeys to Europe where they are forced to work as sex slaves, ‘This Day’ reported.