Some of the suspects
A total of 31 ECOWAS nationals, mostly from Nigeria, suspected to be engaging in prostitution and human trafficking within and around a notorious brothel, christened ‘Bafana Bafana Beach Resort’, in the Ellembele District and Nzema East Municipality, all in the Western Region, have been arrested.
The suspects were arrested by the Western Regional Command of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), through its Axim Sector Command in the region.
The two days intelligence-led operation carried out on Saturday and Sunday began with a swoop on the said brothel and some adjoining drinking bars and makeshift structures within the Essiama enclave in the Ellembelle District. This resulted in the arrest of the suspects aged between 22 and 37.
The operation, which lasted several hours, initially led to the arrest of 17 of the suspects including the owner and manager of the brothel, Kofi Bekoe, 62.
Later, 12 other prostitutes and two suspected human trafficking collaborators were picked up in two separate mop-up operations. Among the prostitutes arrested, two were nursing mothers.
The names of the two suspected human traffickers were given as Ndubueze Okereke, 37, and his wife, Ifeowa Okereke, 35, all Nigerians.
Meanwhile, it was revealed that the suspects were Nigerian nationals while Kofi Bekoe, the owner of the brothel was the only Ghanaian.
A statement issued by the GIS and signed by its Western Regional Public Affairs Officer, Assistant Inspector Moses Manford Akakpo noted that the operation was planned and successfully carried out with the support from the Ellembelle and Nzema East Assemblies.
The statement said the operation was carried out owing to the growing concerns of the nefarious activities by the foreign nationals within the communities and the impunity with which the brothel operated.
The operation was led by the Deputy Superintendent of Immigration (DSI) Emmanuel Dams of Axim Sector Command, with officers drawn from Axim and Mporhor Offices of the Service in the region.
A search conducted as part of the investigations revealed that all the suspects entered the country illegally and, therefore, were without passports or any other travel identification documents.
Further search on them and their premises exposed packs of used and unused condoms particularly, in their rooms.
It was revealed that Kofi Bekoe was arrested some months ago for allegedly harbouring foreign nationals engaged in prostitution, but was later granted bail.
Meanwhile, the 31 suspects are currently in the custody of the Western Regional Command Headquarters of GIS for further investigations, prosecution and subsequent repatriation to their country.
The statement advised landlords and property owners across the country to ensure they check and confirm the immigration status of all would-be foreign tenants before renting out their properties to them.
It also called on all stakeholders, including law enforcement agencies, chiefs, opinion leaders, community members, border residents as well as transport or canoe operators to continue to support the GIS operations in order to ensure maximum security for both the indigenes and the foreign community particularly, in the Western Region.
From Emmanuel Opoku, Takoradi