Young ladies numbering over thirty have accused the Edo State Migration Agency of forcefully picking them along the Ihama Street, GRA, Benin to the agency’s office where the officials of the agency allegedly filmed, extorted them ranging from ₦15,000 to ₦50,000.

The young ladies in voicenote made available to journalists in Benin on Wednesday alleged that after reaching agreement with the officials of the agency that their videos should not be shared to a third party after the payment of an agreed amount, the agency violated the agreement and shared their visuals on social media.

The young ladies showed evidence of receipts of payment to one Uyinmwen Uyigue, who happens to be the Coordinator GRA Hospitality Forum

According to one of the voice notes, they were picked at Ihama Street, drove to the agency’s office where they were asked to cooperate by paying the sum of ₦50,000 and that after that they (agency) will not share their video, which they did, yet they were shown on social media.

One of the ladies in a sobbing voice noted: “I’m still in shock since on Thursday. Edo State Migration Agency, they video us, but they told us they are not going to post the video if only we could cooperate and pay the ransom they ask for. They told us to pay 50k each person which we did, but they still posted the video online, which is not nice. I was shocked when I saw myself trending online. People called me from different places. They told me they saw me on Tiktok, Instagram, etc. I am in shock because they told us they were not going to post the video if we could cooperate, and we cooperated and paid the money they asked for. I even have proof of the transfer. This is not nice.”

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Another lady in a voicenote wept and spoke in broken English, “On Thursday evening, around 8:30, I come come out Ihama. And Before I know, where I for stand for there, na so all those Edo State Migration officers just come. Dey just come hold me and some others of my friends. As dey hold us, I was like ‘oga, why you go hold me nah, him come say make I check time, wetin I dey find for night at dat time, naim I come say oga, 8:30 naim you dey tell me wetin I dey find for night?’ Before I know, these people push me inside bus, carry us go their office, as we reach their office dem come begin dey harass us, dey disgrace us, dey call us names. Dey ask us where we for dey come, dem come dey video is. We sleep for d rooms dem put us, as day come break, dey carry all of us come outside, dem come still video us again. Dem come say na fifty, fifty thousand naim we take bail ourselves. We pay, but before I know, I see myself for internet the next day. My family don dey call me since. My family members don dey say I be disgrace to d family. Dem just dey curse me say see wetin I dey do, me wey be orphan. Dey just disgrace me. My uncle and aunty don dey call me say I am an embarrassment.”

Another lady in a voice noted said: “You know when they took our statement, we were trying to tell them that what happened is that we just came out from the club and dey say no, we must say that they catch us (sic) from the street. We must say that we were standing in the street to do prostitution. We were telling them that is not what happened, they didn’t even allow us to say anything, they were just writing statement for us.”

Another lady in her voice note said she and her friends went to the club but were hungry, went outside to buy Suya but in the were raided: “It was Thursday last week, me and my friends went to club at Ihama. There is one club called ClubQ. So, we went out to get Suya opposite Victorious Kitchen and still ate there because we were hungry. So, on our way coming out, I think they are called Edo Migration Agency, they picked us, we were trying to explain to them we are not doing Street, that we are not prostitutes, that we are just coming out from the club that we came to get Suya and food, but they did not listen. They even picked one girl that was waiting for her boyfriend. The girl was trying to call the guy. So, they took us to Edo Migration Agency, yes that is the name. They took us there, video us, they were asking us questions. We begged them they should not post the video, that we have family members that are on social media, they should not post it. They said they were going to cover our face if they want to post the video. So, I was thinking that after filming us they will just leave us to go, they kept us, delay us till around 6 in the evening. We were more than 30 girls that they carry. They now collected fifty, fifty thousand each of us. We begged them to that fifty thousand. They started with hundred thousand, but we begged that we don’t have that amount. We begged them that we don’t have money that they should let us go that we have not done anything wrong. They said they are going to take us to prison if we don’t pay, so we were scared. We now begged for 20k, they said no, that 50k last, we were more than 30. They collected 50,000 each from us. My sister saw the video, they are calling me, my dad is very angry for me. I don’t even know how to explain to them because I have told them my own side of the story.”

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Contacted, the Director General of the Migration Agency, Lucky Agazuma, on the allegation of extortion, while absolving his agency and officials said those arrested were profiled and later released to go.

He said the agency was well funded and would not resort to extorting money from sex workers.

Agazuma said the agency never extorted sex workers but worked towards rehabilitating them back to society.

“We have had several engagements with brothel owners. We told them we will not be after their brothel but they should not bring underage into their brothel.

“In our raiding, we discovered that they kept underaged girls. Those persons who were involved in this act are in prison, including the native doctor who took them on oath. They also do organ harvesting. Even as I speak to you now, there’s a husband and a wife who just trafficked a little girl to Mali. They are in prison right now.”

Contacted, Mr. Uyigue confirmed collecting money from four sex workers but he said the money he collected was fine paid by owners of lodge where the sex workers stays.

He said the lodge owners under the auspices of GRA Hospitality Forum agreed on a fine of N50,000 for any of their girls caught in the street hawking sex.