The Federal Government has extradited a suspected human trafficker, Joy Jeff, to Italy to face criminal charges.
The 48-year-old who is one of the few women on Italy’s list of “100 Most Wanted” criminals, was extradited by the Nigerian authorities on Wednesday.
Jeff has been on the wanted list since 2010 after she was accused of playing a leading role in the illegal transporting of Nigerian girls to Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain for prostitution and s*x trafficking.
The woman and her cartel were said to have recruited young Nigerian ladies and transported them to the European countries where they used violence and threats to keep their victims in line.
She had previously been tried and sentenced to 13 years in prison in absentia by the Italian authorities.
Jeff’s extradition process started after she was arrested on June 4, 2022, in Nigeria by intelligence operatives after years of monitoring.
The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, had last month informed the ItalianAambassador to Nigeria, Stefano De Leo, that the suspect would be extradited after the conclusion of investigations.
A statement from the office of the Attorney-General said the successful extradition was made possible due to the excellent collaboration between both countries, with the Italian immigration providing support to the local police forces.
Italian Police Force Central Director, Vittorio Rizzi, confirmed the development to the country’s media.
He said: “Today, Africa is confirmed as a strategic area for the search for fugitives and the fight against organised crime.
“Developing African countries also represent elective places for the laundering of the illicit capital of organised crime and Italy is committed at an international level to facilitate, through penal and administrative instruments, the tracing of the illicit assets of the mafias for their seizure and confiscation.”
