Two Nigerians, who have been accused of recruiting girls between the ages of 17 and 20, from Nigeria to Ghana, and engaging them in prostitution, have appeared before an Accra Circuit Court.

They are Joy John, a beautician, and Sandra Sunday, a hair stylist. Joy has been charged with human trafficking, while Sandra is facing a charge of abetment of crime. They have pleaded not guilty, and the Court, presided over by Mrs Ruby Aryeetey, has remanded them into custody.

According to the Court, the accused persons were foreigners, and their current place of abode per the facts of the police was a guest house. Meanwhile, one the accused persons’ accomplice, known as Mercy, is at large. DSP C.K. Abandamlora, the prosecutor, said the complainant was a fashion designer residing at Kasoa, while the accused persons resided in Classic Guest House at Nungua-Adegon, in Accra.

In August this year, the Prosecution said Joy went to Nigeria and recruited three of the victims who were about 17, 18 and 20 years old respectively, under the pretext that they were going to work in a restaurant in Ghana. On arriving in Ghana, the prosecutor said, Joy, however, took the victims to the guesthouse at Nungua-Adegon and sent them out every night to go and engage in prostitution. According to DSP Abadamlora, the victims were to render account between GHC 100 and GHC150 to the accused each day.

The Prosecution said Sandra abetted the crime when she was tasked by Joy to collect the daily earnings from the victims for nine days when she (Joy) travelled to Nigeria. When Joy returned from Nigeria, Sandra gave her GHC 500 as proceeds from the victims.

The Prosecution said on November 30, this year, at about 0100 hours, the complainant and her friends who knew the victims in Nigeria saw them at a spot known as Kris berry at Nungua Adegon, and they asked the victim what they were doing there.

The complainant asked the victims to lead her with her friends to their place of abode and Sandra was arrested. She led the Police to arrest Joy but Mercy escaped. The court differed its judgement and asked the accused to reappear on November 18.

citifmonline.com