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From Aniekan Aniekan, Calabar
The Zone 6 headquarters of the Nigeria Police Force has burst a kidnapping and job scam syndicate specialising in deceiving young people into migrating to other countries and rescued 100 victims.
The syndicate deploys psychological coercion and deception to swindle victims, compelling them to sell their property and relinquish life savings under the guise of securing visas, citizenship, and lucrative employment opportunities abroad.
DSP Jefferson Osupe, the Zonal Public Relations Officer, in a statement said upon the receipt of credible intelligence, the command AIG directed the DCP in charge of the Zonal Criminal Investigation Department (ZCID), DCP Udu Moses Ogechi, PhD, to take decisive action.
“Acting on this directive, the ZCID operatives swung into action in the early hours of 14th February, 2026, at about 0600hrs, to dismantle the organized criminal network.
“The enterprise had exploited the prevailing “JAPA” trend by targeting youths eager to relocate overseas, promising seamless travel arrangements and guaranteed foreign placements.
“Preliminary investigations revealed that victims were persuaded to resign from their employment, dispose of personal assets, and transfer substantial sums of money to the syndicate.
“Upon arrival at designated locations within Cross River State, they were psychologically manipulated, financially incapacitated, and rendered vulnerable.
“Thereafter, they were coerced into working for the syndicate by recruiting additional victims, thereby sustaining the criminal operation.
“The syndicate maintained a deceptive façade by accommodating victims in well-furnished apartments within the state, staging photographs in aesthetically appealing environments, and directing them to forward such images to relatives via social media platforms to falsely suggest successful relocation abroad.
“Some victims were forcefully integrated into the structure of the syndicate and assigned operational roles to perpetuate the scheme,” he said.
The Zonal PRO added that the team apprehended key suspects connected with the network and rescued over 100 victims from various locations.
He further disclosed that the rescued victims have since been handed over to the Cross River State Government for proper care, profiling, and reintegration support.
He also disclosed that in the course of the investigation, the syndicate allegedly attempted to compromise the process with a bribe offer of N50 million, which was firmly rejected. He said intensive investigation was on-going to apprehend other fleeing members of the syndicate.
