A Federal High Court sitting in Calabar, the Cross River State capital has sentenced one Ifeanyi Kelvin Okorogu, from Imo Sate to 3 years imprisonment for human trafficking and attempting to sell a child. Okorogu was arraigned by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) on a 2 counts charge under the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015.
The Man and his accomplice were arrested on December 1, 2017 at the Margret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar by men of the Nigeria Immigration Service and transferred to the Uyo Zonal Command of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) for further investigations and prosecution.
He was charged under Sections 13 and 29 of the Trafficking Prohibition Act. He harboured a 16year old girl and exploited her using her position of vulnerability. He further attempted to sell the victims baby at the sum of N150, 000 before he was arrested at the Airport.
Delivering Judgement on the case on Friday, Hon Justice Inyang Ekwo found Okorogu guilty of the offence and sentenced him on the 2 counts charge. He was sentenced to 2 years imprisonment on count 1 and 2 years on count 2. The sentences will run concurrently. The sentence is however, without an option of fine.
Reacting to this conviction, the Director-General of NAPTIP, Dame Julie Okah-Donli commended the Honourable Justice for the courage in handling the case. She however, called on traffickers to look for better things to engage in as the Agency will not spare anyone caught in the act of human trafficking.
Emeh Achanga,the CEO of the Miss Petite Nigeria Brand is a lawyer turned blogger. She is very passionate about writing, with several publications and awards to her credit .She is currently working on publishing a collection of short stories which are basically a memoir about her exciting true experiences.
