By Prosper Okoye
A senior Spanish police official on Tuesday warned that Nigerian organised crime networks are increasingly exploiting legal migration channels, digital technologies and international financial systems to expand human trafficking operations, urging closer cooperation between Nigerian and European law enforcement agencies to dismantle the transnational networks.
Speaking at a four-day workshop on Strengthening Transnational Investigative Cooperation: Combating Trafficking in Persons (TIP) and Smuggling of Migrants (SOM) through the Nigeria–Spain Strategic Partnership, Javier Leon, Deputy Team Leader at FIAP and Chief Inspector of the Spanish National Police, said criminal groups had become increasingly sophisticated, making international collaboration more critical than ever.
The workshop comes as European and West African authorities seek to strengthen cooperation against trafficking networks that are increasingly adapting their methods, shifting beyond traditional irregular migration routes to exploit legal travel channels, digital platforms and modern financial systems.
“Human trafficking is not simply a migration issue. It is a global criminal business that exploits vulnerable people for profit,” Leon said. “Our response must therefore be international, intelligence-led and centred on protecting victims.”
The workshop, organised under the EU Support to Migration Governance Project in Nigeria (Component 3), brought together law enforcement officials from Nigeria and Spain to strengthen cross-border investigations into trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants.
Drawing on more than a decade investigating irregular migration and trafficking networks in Spain’s Canary Islands, Leon said organised criminal groups had continually adapted their methods to evade law enforcement.
The Atlantic archipelago, located off the northwest coast of Africa, has become one of Europe’s principal entry points for African migrants attempting the perilous Atlantic crossing.
Leon said about 40,000 migrants reached the Canary Islands in 2024, while many others were believed to have died attempting the journey because of dehydration, starvation and exposure.
He warned that the same migration routes had long been exploited by organised criminal groups involved in trafficking, sexual exploitation and other forms of transnational crime.
According to Leon, Nigerian criminal organisations maintain a significant presence along these routes and increasingly collaborate with criminal networks operating across Europe.
He described what is commonly referred to as the “Nigerian Mafia” as a loose collection of criminal organisations operating through decentralised cells across several countries, making investigations and prosecutions particularly challenging.
“They do not specialise in one criminal activity,” Leon said. “They diversify their operations, making them highly resilient and capable of adapting quickly.”
According to Leon, the groups use cryptocurrencies and other modern financial tools, recruit victims through social media, exploit migration routes and engage in crimes ranging from trafficking in persons and drug trafficking to cybercrime, money laundering, extortion and document forgery.
Providing historical context, Leon said some of the networks traced their origins to university confraternities established in Nigeria decades ago. He noted that the National Association of Seadogs, popularly known as the Pyrates Confraternity, was founded in 1952 at the then University College, Ibadan, by students including Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, stressing that the organisation was originally created to promote social justice and student welfare rather than criminal activity.
He said violent splinter groups later emerged during the 1970s and 1980s, with some eventually evolving into organised criminal enterprises.
Leon identified Black Axe, Eiye, Buccaneers and Vikings among confraternities that law enforcement agencies have linked to various forms of organised crime, while noting that their structures, alliances and criminal activities differ.
He said trafficking in persons remained one of the most profitable criminal enterprises for the networks, with Edo State, particularly Benin City, continuing to serve as one of Nigeria’s principal source areas for victims trafficked to Europe.
Many victims, he said, are recruited with promises of employment, education or better economic opportunities before being subjected to sexual exploitation.
Recruitment frequently involves trusted relatives, friends, neighbours, former victims and, in some cases, religious figures. Leon added that many victims undergo traditional oath-taking rituals before leaving Nigeria, creating deep psychological fear that often discourages them from cooperating with investigators even after reaching Europe.
Although Spanish authorities provide legal protection and support to victims willing to testify, many remain reluctant to assist investigations because of fear of reprisals, he said.
Leon said trafficking routes had traditionally passed through Niger, across the Sahara Desert and into Libya before migrants attempted the Mediterranean crossing into Europe. However, he warned that traffickers were increasingly exploiting legitimate travel channels by using forged documents, fraudulent visas and commercial flights.
Recalling a recent incident, Leon said he observed groups of young women at Abuja’s international airport whose travel patterns, based on his investigative experience, raised concerns that they could be trafficking victims. He stressed that the observation reflected his professional assessment and illustrated what he believes are changing trafficking methods.
He said tackling increasingly sophisticated trafficking networks would require stronger financial investigations, expanded use of digital evidence, enhanced intelligence sharing and sustained operational cooperation.
“No country can confront these criminal organisations alone,” Leon said. “The networks are transnational, and our response must be equally transnational.”
Also speaking, Edeoga Chineye, Head of the Intelligence and International Cooperation Unit at Nigeria’s National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), said trafficking networks were constantly evolving, with investigators increasingly encountering new routes and recruitment methods, particularly through cyberspace.
“Human trafficking is changing every day. New routes and trends are emerging, especially in cyberspace, which is why law enforcement agencies must continue building their knowledge and strengthening international cooperation to stay ahead of these criminal networks,” she said.
Chineye said Nigeria and Spain had developed a strong partnership over the years, enabling both countries to investigate and prosecute several high-profile trafficking cases through intelligence sharing and joint operations.
FIAP Project Officer Cayetana Belisco said the workshop reflected the growing partnership between Nigeria and Spain in strengthening migration governance and cross-border law enforcement cooperation.
She said trafficking in persons and the smuggling of migrants had become increasingly transnational crimes requiring coordinated responses built on trust, shared expertise and sustained institutional partnerships.
“Public servants learn best from one another,” Belisco said. “Building professional relationships and mutual trust is essential to tackling organised criminal networks that operate across borders.”
Chineye said traffickers continued to adapt their methods, making sustained cooperation between Nigerian and European authorities increasingly important.
“These networks do not respect borders,” she said. “Our response cannot stop at national borders either.”
