Drugged, Beaten, Forced to Sleep with 60 Men Daily: Teenage Girl’s Harrowing Escape from Lagos Traffickers

LAGOS, Nigeria – A 16-year-old girl who escaped while bleeding from multiple injuries has led the Lagos State Police Command to uncover a child trafficking and forced prostitution ring operating inside a four-storey building disguised as a beverage warehouse in Balogun Market, Lagos Island. The teenager, identified as Chidinma (surname withheld), was allegedly lured from Delta State with the promise of a N100,000 monthly catering job, only to be forced into sex work and made to sleep with up to 30 men daily—sometimes as many as 60 in a single day—over a period of four months. Police operatives have so far rescued 12 underage girls aged between 13 and 16 from the clandestine brothel, arrested two suspects, and are currently profiling the victims while investigations continue.

The story of Chidinma’s descent into sexual slavery began with a promise that quickly became a nightmare. Chidinma, originally from Imo State, had been learning baking in Asaba, Delta State, when she met 28-year-old Princess Andrew, who presented herself as a benefactor. According to the teenager, Andrew told her she had secured a job for her where she would earn N100,000 monthly and asked her to come along with a friend. Chidinma, who had relocated to Delta after losing a baby through a Caesarean section, said Andrew was fully aware of her medical history. “She knew I had a baby and lost it. She was the one who met me in Asaba and told me to come with my friend to Lagos, that she had a job for us,” Chidinma told investigators. But upon arrival at a building inside Balogun Market, the reality of the situation became immediately clear. “She never told me the work I was coming to do. She only said, ‘You are coming to serve in the office,'” Chidinma said. “Upon my arrival, my madam removed my clothes and left me only with pants. There were other young ladies there. She told us to stand by the door and dragged men inside.”

When Chidinma resisted the horrific situation she had been thrust into, she alleged that Andrew gave her a blue-coloured drug—believed to be the sedative Rohypnol—that left her disoriented and unable to resist. “She gave me five tablets and said they would make me act differently. That’s how I started dragging men, and I slept with more than 20 that night,” she told police. What followed was a daily reality of relentless exploitation. Her work hours began at 4:00 AM and continued until 5:00 PM without food or rest, and she was forced to sleep with between 10 and 30 men daily, sometimes up to 60 men. Men paid between N3,000 and N10,000 per session, while overnight rates ranged from N20,000 to N30,000. Yet Chidinma received only N1,000 to N1,500 daily for food, while her trafficker kept the rest. A fellow rescued victim corroborated the scale of the exploitation, stating, “I can say that I have slept with over 200 men in one month.”

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The physical abuse Chidinma endured was as savage as the sexual exploitation. She alleged she was subjected to savage beatings whenever she attempted to insist on safe sex practices. “Any time I told the men to use protection and they refused, they would report me to my madam. She would drag me into a room and beat me with an iron rod until I bled,” she said. Her trafficker was aware of her medical vulnerability, having known about her Caesarean section, yet she exploited that knowledge cruelly. “She punched me severely in the stomach, knowing fully well that I had an operation,” Chidinma recounted. One attack was so severe that it left her unable to see for an entire week. “There was a time she punched my eye. For one week, I could not see with this eye,” she said, pointing to her left eye.

Chidinma’s ordeal reached a breaking point when she refused further clients due to excruciating pain in her private parts. “That day, a man lodged me and another girl. I escaped from there because my madam threatened me with a knife because I complained of pains in my private part,” she recounted. When she returned late from an overnight assignment, Andrew allegedly broke a bottle and attacked her with it, then beat her with a rod. “I was bleeding from my eyes and my entire body,” she said. Despite her injuries, she managed to flee the brothel and boarded a bus to Costain, the only area she knew. A compassionate commuter observed her critical condition and took her to the Bode Thomas Police Station in Surulere. The Divisional Police Officer (DPO), CSP Arit Abang, immediately ensured she received medical treatment at a hospital before taking her statement, setting in motion the police operation that would follow.

Acting on information provided by Chidinma, the Commissioner of Police for Lagos State, Tijani Fatai, personally led a team of detectives and journalists to the location in Balogun Market. Traders at the Adire line section of the market were stunned to learn that a building they knew as a beverage warehouse housed clandestine brothels on two of its floors. “The building, tucked beside an uncompleted structure in the densely populated market, housed brothels on two floors, where older women rented rooms and brought in teenagers whom they allegedly forced to sleep with multiple men daily,” reported The Nation Newspaper following the raid. CP Tijani confirmed that the syndicate specifically targeted vulnerable minors between the ages of 13 and 15, luring them from various states with promises of legitimate employment. “The girl informed us that there were about 30 girls involved, but we currently have 12 in our custody,” the CP said. “We are still profiling them and verifying their identities, ages and how long they had been held there,” he added.

The prime suspect, Princess Andrew, 28, who was arrested on June 12, 2026, has vehemently denied the charges. “I am not anybody’s madam. I work on my own as a sex-worker since February. Nobody works for me. I merely assisted the young woman by connecting her with accommodation after she arrived from Delta State,” Andrew claimed. She disputed Chidinma’s age, alleging the teenager was 21 years old, not 16, and also admitted to beating the teenager. “She lied about her age. She will be 21 this year. I knew her back in Delta State when she was pregnant. She collected my money and I used my cane to wipe her,” Andrew stated. She also claimed she paid a daily rent of N10,000 for her room and earned between N30,000 and N50,000 daily from her own sex work. Police investigations are ongoing, and authorities have confirmed that a full forensic investigation is underway to uncover the full extent of the syndicate’s operations.

CP Tijani Fatai reaffirmed the command’s commitment to dismantling human trafficking and child exploitation networks in the state, stating, “We will continue our investigation, which will lead to the prosecution of the principal suspect and other members of the syndicate.” He noted that the criminal network appeared to have been operating for a long time and urged members of the public to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities. All rescued victims are currently in protective custody, with medical checkups and age verification being conducted. Despite the trauma she has endured, Chidinma’s focus remains on rebuilding her life. “I am tired. I want to go back to my catering work. I am almost done with it,” she said, expressing a quiet hope that stands in stark contrast to the nightmare she has survived.

Drugged, Beaten, Forced to Sleep with 60 Men Daily: Teenage Girl’s Harrowing Escape from Lagos Traffickers