Patricia Igbinovia, 55, has been sentenced to seven years in prison for transporting underage girls abroad for prostitution.
The court also sentenced Igbinovia to pay N1 million for her illegal behavior, in addition to serving the term.
Igbinovia, who was accused of six counts of trafficking young girls, promoting girls’ prostitution, and sexual exploitation, was brought before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke by the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), but pleaded guilty.
In the accusation, the prosecutor, Mrs. Becky Jibo, stated the convict belonged to a cartel that organizes and funds overseas travel for females to promote prostitution and sexual exploitation.
She alleged the criminal recruited girls to go from Lagos to Málaga, in Spain, for prostitution.
Following the convict’s guilty plea, the prosecution filed an appeal to review the facts of the case, which the court granted.
The prosecutor called a witness, Mrs. Mabel Bajulaiye, a member of the team that investigated intelligence on the Nigerian organized crime ring.
The witness informed the court that sometime in 2016, the Federal Government got intelligence about a crime cell that trafficked young girls to Madrid and Málaga in Spain via the Attorney General’s office.
Bajulaiye said that the girls were forced to work as prostitutes for sexual exploitation and financial gain.
According to the witness, the crime was discovered thanks to a collaboration between the Nigerian and Spanish governments on human trafficking and prostitution.
In his ruling, Justice Aneke stated that he listened to the defense’s plea for leniency, especially as the convict did not waste the court’s time.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
