A High Court in Maiduguri, Borno State, has sentenced a 52-year-old man, Goni Bawa Koterema, to five years in prison for trafficking a fellow indigene to Ghana for exploitation.
Justice M. B. Umar of Court 11, High Court of Justice, Maiduguri, handed down the sentence after finding Koterema guilty of recruiting and transporting a 33-year-old man out of the state for labour purposes.
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, prosecuted the case.
According to the charge, Koterema's action contravened Section 26(1) of the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015, which criminalises the recruitment and movement of persons for exploitation.
The case commenced with his arraignment on April 8, 2026, and concluded on November 9, 2026, when the court delivered its judgement and imposed the five-year prison term.
NAPTIP described the conviction as a demonstration of its commitment to prosecuting human traffickers and securing justice for victims.
The agency also warned members of the public against engaging in human trafficking, stressing that the offence attracts severe punishment under the law.
NAPTIP secures five-year jail term for human trafficking in Borno