Mother, children jailed for trafficking teenager to Russia

Juliana Francis

 

Okah-Donli

A 54-year-old woman, Mrs. Helen Ehionzee and her children, Endurance and Vivian, have been sentenced to 34 years imprisonment for trafficking 16-year-old girl to Russia for prostitution.

The woman and her children were convicted by a Benin High Court to 34 years imprisonment without option of fine for an offence of human trafficking and exploitation.

The convicts were dragged before the Benin High Court by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) following their arrest over the trafficking of the victim to Russia in 2012.

Press and Public Relations Unit of NAPTIP, Adekoye Vincent, said: “The victim, who was later rescued from the sexual exploitation by a Russian based non-governmental organisation, was 19 years old at the time of the incident and was recruited from Benin with a fake promise of profitable job abroad.”

The latest development came on the heels of the repeated warnings by the Director General of NAPTIP, Dame Julie Okah-Donli, who is also the Chair of the newly inaugurated Board of the United Nations Voluntary Trust Fund for Victims of Trafficking.

She had often reiterated that the Agency shall no more tolerate any form of trafficking in Nigeria.

Vincent said: “Following the arrest of the convicts by operatives of NAPTIP and detailed investigation, the case was subsequently charged to the Benin High Court with charge No B/NAPTIP/IC/19 on November 7, 2017, before the then Honourable Justice Eruaga now retired.”

 

Vincent also explained that the case started on October 29, 2018, where the defendants pleaded not guilty to an amended charge dated October 5, 2018 to wit: count one, procurement of persons for prostitution contrary to Section 15 (a) for first and second defendants.

He said count two, charge is for organising foreign travels which promotes prostitution and count three for promoting foreign travels which promotes prostitution Section 16 of the Trafficking in Persons Prohibition Law Enforcement and Administration Act 2003 as amended, for first and third defendants

The Prosecution called four witnesses in proof of its case, while the defendants testified for themselves and called no witness.

The first defendant, Endurance Ehiozee, male, now 37, was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment on count one, and 10 year imprisonment on count three to run concurrently without option of fine.

The second defendant, Vivian Omoyemwen Ehiozee, 31, was sentenced to 14 years on count one and 10 years on count two without option of fine.

“The third defendant, Helen Ehiozee, who is the mother to first and second defendants, was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment on count three without an option of fine. The defendants are From Egor Local Government Area of Edo State,” said Vincent.

Delivering the Judgement at Criminal Court 2, Hon. Justice Geraldine Imadubelo said that the sentences were without option of fine.

Applauding the judgment, Okah-Donli, said that the sentence which was without option of fine would certainly serve as deterrent to traffickers.

She added: “I am glad that adequate justice was duly served on the convicts. I commend the Judiciary in Nigeria for its support in the fight against human trafficking and I urge for more support. I also commend officers and men of the Benin Zonal Command for the diligent prosecution of the case. On our own part, we shall continue to unleash heat on human traffickers in the country. Our resolve to make Nigeria a human trafficking free nation is resolute and unwavering. It is in the realisation of this that we have commenced the inauguration of State Task Forces on Human Trafficking in the country among other counter trafficking measures. We have also activated our surveillance strategies to match the antics of the traffickers ahead of the yuletide.”