Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have raided an illegal detention camp in Itoga, Badagry, rescuing 24 people and arresting four suspected members of a cross-border criminal network.
The operation, carried out by the NSCDC Lagos State Command on Friday, followed months of surveillance and community intelligence on suspicious activity in the area.
Lagos Commandant Adedotun Keshinro said the raid led to the arrest of a suspected kingpin and three other foreign nationals from Togo, Benin Republic and Ghana.
They were found holding 18 men, six women and a toddler at various hideouts in Itoga.
"Some of the victims had been declared missing by their families for periods ranging from three months to three years without any knowledge of their whereabouts," Keshinro stated.
The rescued include nationals of Nigeria, Togo and Benin Republic who were allegedly lured into the camps through deception and false promises.
According to the NSCDC, the syndicate ran an organised extortion scheme.
Victims were reportedly forced to call relatives and claim they had been kidnapped or involved in accidents, in order to demand ransom payments.
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The Commandant also allege some were compelled to take part in fraud and drug trafficking, and to recruit others into the camp.
Keshinro said several families had spent years searching for their missing relatives before local tip-offs led officers to the facility.
He has now urged the public to come forward to help identify the rescued victims.
"The suspects will be charged before a court of competent jurisdiction upon the conclusion of investigations to serve as a deterrent to other criminal elements," he added.
The discovery comes less than two months after the same NSCDC command uncovered a suspected baby factory in Okuju, Ilado, Badagry.
In that April operation, 18 pregnant women and 10 children were rescued, with two suspects arrested.
NSCDC said victims in that case were recruited through Facebook adverts.
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