• NAPTIP DG: “2025 will be hell for human traffickers in Nigeria”
A convicted human trafficker and leader of a notorious international trafficking syndicate, Uadiale Christiana Jacob, popularly known as “Christy Gold,” has been arrested by authorities as she arrived in Nigeria from Dubai on December 31, 2024.
In a statement signed by NAPTIP Press Officer Vincent Adekoye said Christy Gold had been on the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) wanted list for five years.
Christy Gold was apprehended at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja by officers of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS).
Her arrest followed NAPTIP’s 2023 request for her to be watchlisted due to her role in recruiting and trafficking young Nigerian girls for sexual exploitation in Dubai.
This arrest marks the culmination of a protracted pursuit. Christy Gold was first detained by NAPTIP in 2020 for her involvement in human trafficking but fled to Dubai after being granted bail by the Federal High Court in Asaba, Delta State.
A bench warrant was issued for her arrest in November 2021 after she violated her bail terms. In March 2024, she was convicted in absentia by Justice F.A. Olubanjo of the Federal High Court in Asaba, pending sentencing upon her re-arrest.
Director General of NAPTIP, Binta Adamu Bello, praised the NIS and other agencies for their collaboration in apprehending Christy Gold.
“This arrest demonstrates the power of inter-agency synergy,” she said, adding that other accomplices, including Michael Nduka, Osas Wiseman, and a Lagos-based individual identified as “Prophet John,” remain at large.
Bello issued a stern warning to members of the trafficking network still in hiding: “You can only run for a while. We are determined to dismantle these criminal networks and make 2025 a nightmare for human traffickers in Nigeria.”
NAPTIP assured the public of its continued commitment to protecting Nigerians from trafficking and exploitation, emphasizing that justice will prevail for victims. Christy Gold is expected to face sentencing in the coming days.
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