Oti: 36 Trafficked Persons Rescued By Police On Volta Lake In 2021

The Oti Regional Police Command has disclosed that it managed to successfully rescue 36 people who were trafficked on Volta Lake at the end of 2021. This has been confirmed by the Oti regional commander of the Ghana Police Service, DCOP Charles Domanba. Speaking during a stakeholder engagement led by the

International Justice Mission (IJM) at Kete-Krachi in the Oti region on the theme; Proactive Lake Patrol-with a focus on marine police operations and collaborations aimed at tackling human trafficking activities on the Volta Lake, the Commander said through great efforts, there were many success stories last year. Before the

introduction of the marine police, police in the Oti region have assisted the IJM in the handling of child and human trafficking cases on the Volta Lake -and for the 2021, we recorded eight(8) cases. Out of these, four persons have been sent to the court; one has since been convicted while three others are still facing trial.

Four other cases are also under investigation and we had thirty-six (36) rescues for 2021, DCOP Charles Domanba shared. Keen on helping in the fight against human trafficking activities in Ghana, particularly on the Volta Lake, the International Justice Mission is currently piloting a project where some personnel of the marine lolice is also being trained under the Volta Command.

Commenting on the importance of the project, DCOP Charles Domanba expressed his delight while insisting that it will play a vital role to halt the activities of human traffickers. With the coming of the marine police, they will be assisting the IJM in a professional way because they are going to patrol the Volta lake, the Oti Regional Police Commander said.