A 21-year-old Nigerian woman based in India has alleged that three of her compatriots, including a couple, forced her into prostitution and confined her in a flat.

The case was registered on January 15 at Manpada police station and transferred to the Kharghar police on Sunday.

The complainant, a hairstylist from Nasukha in Enugu city, had met a man named Kingsley in January 2019 in Nigeria who had told her that his sister Grace Okhafur was in India and she could help her get a good job there.

With the help of Mr Kingsley she landed in Delhi on June 27, 2019, where an unidentified lady helped her get to Mumbai by booking her a train ticket. On June 28, Ms Okhafur and her husband, Jan Okhafur, met her at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and took her to their flat in Dombivali.

As per the complaint, on June 29, she was taken to a flat in a society in Sector 30, Kharghar, which belongs to one Ningojhi, another Nigerian national.

After reaching there, the complainant was threatened by the couple that she would be killed if she did not cooperate.

“According to the complainant, she was forced into prostitution and was compelled to stay with a ‘client’ for over a week in the flat,” police inspector Mahesh Patil from Kharghar police station said.

She was forced into the trade till November 2019, after which she managed to escape. Till then Ms. Okhafur had earned ₹2.23 lakh through the victim and wanted her to earn ₹12 lakh more.

After her escape, the complainant approached a Nigerian student and a community welfare association through which she tried to get her passport and visa back from Ms. Okhafur which she refused to give. The victim finally approached the Manpada police and filed a complaint.

Ms. Okhafur and her husband along with Mr. Ningojhi have been booked under Sections 344 (wrongful confinement for 10 or more days), 366B (importation of girl from foreign country), 370A (exploitation of trafficked person), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code and the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act.

“Mr. Okhafur is currently in Taloja jail after he was arrested in a drugs case. No arrest has been made in this case,” Mr. Patil said.

Source