In this report, Victor Ayeni exposes the deceptive tactics human traffickers use to lure vulnerable women and children into sex slavery both in Nigeria and abroad. The notorious trafficker known as “Jeff Joy,” listed among Italy’s 100 most dangerous fugitives, was handcuffed by Italian police in a viral video that shows her limping toward a vehicle while officers from the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in Abuja watch. Her real name is Charity Omoruyi. Dressed in a long traditional gown with brown and grey oval patterns and a black veil, she was arrested in June 2022. Omoruyi, a former Nigerian prostitute, led a vast trafficking network operating in Nigeria, Italy, Spain, and the Netherlands. After a Federal High Court order in Abuja, she was extradited to Italy, arriving at Rome’s Ciampino airport on 8 March 2023 in a wheelchair. This was the first extradition under the 2020 treaty between the Italian and Nigerian governments. Italian authorities later sentenced her to 13 years in prison for running a prostitution ring and trafficking women to Italy.
Charity Omoruyi was born in 1975, although NAPTIP lists her age as 54. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime reports that she arrived in Ravenna, Italy, in 1995 seeking asylum, which was granted. Hailing from Ego Local Government Area in Edo State, she coordinated a trafficking ring that lured numerous Nigerian girls and the destitute, forcing them into prostitution across Europe, often under duress. Her activities placed her on Italy’s list of the ten most wanted criminals. After a tip‑off led to the arrest of some network members, Omoruyi fled Italy for Nigeria, was tried and convicted in absentia, and later apprehended in Benin, Edo State, in June 2022. She was transferred to NAPTIP’s Benin Zonal Command, then to its headquarters in Abuja, and held pending extradition. Her transfer to Italy was facilitated by Article 12 of the 2016 extradition treaty signed in Rome. Edo State accounts for the highest number of trafficked girls in Nigeria, representing 19.6 % of national victims in 2017, and NAPTIP has secured convictions in 359 cases since its inception in 2003.
Omoruyi is one of many Nigerian “madams” who dominate the grim trade of moving young girls across the Sahara Desert or the Mediterranean Sea. Traffickers often use legitimate businesses as fronts for their illegal activities. The United Nations International Organisation for Migration noted a nearly 600 % increase in potential sex‑trafficking victims arriving in Italy since 2014, estimating that 80 % of them are Nigerians. A woman named Loveth from Edo State recounted being deceived into traveling to Mali with her son under the promise of a job, only to have her passport confiscated and be forced into prostitution to pay a ransom she could not meet. She eventually escaped after paying half the demanded sum.
The United Nations traces Nigerian women’s trafficking for prostitution back to the late 1980s, when women were sent to Italy and later returned home as the first generation of madams, perpetuating the cycle. Inyang Okokon, a survivor, described being lured from Akwa Ibom State in 1999 with a false promise of a restaurant job in Italy. After selling her own restaurant, she was sold to another madam for £15 000 and forced to repay £45 000. She explained that traffickers use “searchers” who canvass villages, schools, and markets, promising jobs abroad while demanding £30 000‑£50 000 per person, then extracting additional funds for housing, rent, and other expenses. Victims are compelled to swear oaths never to escape or report their traffickers.
A Pathfinders Justice Initiative fact sheet defines human trafficking as modern‑day slavery, a $150 billion global industry, with two‑thirds ($99 billion) generated from commercial sexual exploitation and the remainder from forced economic labor. The United Nations estimates that smuggling routes from East, North, and West Africa to Europe generate $150 million annually, amounting to $35 billion worldwide. In Nigeria, both external and internal trafficking are rampant, especially involving children. NAPTIP data from 2019‑2022 show that 61 % of trafficking occurs internally, with victims moved from rural areas to urban centers for exploitative labor. Cases include the 2022 arrest of “Madam Success” in Anambra State for luring four schoolgirls aged 13‑15 into prostitution, and the 2022 capture of Blessing Iniedem for deceiving a 16‑year‑old into a Port Harcourt brothel.
Nigeria is a source, transit, and destination country for trafficking, according to the 2022 U.S. State Department report. While Europe remains the primary destination, victims are also sent to Central Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa. Survivor Blessing described being misled into a journey toward Libya, where she was raped, forced to drink contaminated water, and held for ransom. Another survivor, Becky, recounted months of detention in Libya, repeated rape by militia guards, and a sense of utter helplessness.
Traffickers also exploit cultural beliefs, binding victims with deadly oaths and voodoo rituals that threaten spiritual retribution if they speak out. In a Deutsche Welle documentary, a victim named Blessing explained that failing to pay her madam would invoke “juju” that could kill her. Another survivor, Nadege, described an oath involving a coffin that would bring disaster if broken. Psychologist Kolawole Afolabi noted that traffickers deliberately use traditional oath‑taking to control victims, especially in rural African contexts where such beliefs are deeply ingrained, and emphasized the need for professional counseling to overcome this psychological hold.
On 9 March 2018, the Oba of Benin, Ewuare II, cursed anyone abetting human trafficking in Edo State, revoking oaths that silenced victims. He warned native doctors who enforce secrecy to repent or face repercussions. Edo State Task Force spokesperson Kelly Ehanire explained that the state’s high trafficking rates stem from youths seeking better lives abroad, leading many to be trafficked to Libya, Mali, and elsewhere. Although the Oba’s curse reduced trafficking, underground networks persist.
Legal experts call for greater awareness and stronger enforcement. Lawyer Omotoso Aanuoluwapo urged survivors to report offenses, noting that the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Law Enforcement and Administration Act empowers High Courts to impose penalties, and that the Child Rights Act 2003, though not yet adopted by all states, criminalizes child trafficking. NGO worker Olaide Ajayi stressed that government at all levels must address root causes such as corruption, gender inequality, unemployment, and underdevelopment. He advocated for local support services, development strategies aligned with international standards, and federal programs to protect and empower survivors through medical, psychological, legal, and shelter assistance, as mandated by the Trafficking Victims Act 2000.
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