An anti-human trafficking campaigner, Zege’Orkwande Sughnen Yaaya, has alleged that a lawyer, Barr. J.T. Tarkaa, attempted to physically confront him during a court proceeding involving a Benue woman accused of trafficking and sexually exploiting 13 Benue girls in Ghana. Yaaya disclosed this in a statement on his Facebook page on Friday morning, saying the incident followed his efforts to secure the return of the alleged victims from Ghana and pursue justice for them.
According to Yaaya, the matter began after 13 Benue girls allegedly reached out to him from Ghana, claiming that a woman identified as Christiana Tsavkaha Terngu had trafficked them and locked them up for sexual exploitation. He said he contacted Terngu to hear her side of the story but alleged that she responded with insults and threats and refused to report herself to the police. Yaaya subsequently reported the matter at the B Division Police Station in Makurdi and later transferred the case to the State Criminal Investigation Department after efforts were made to locate Terngu.
He alleged that Terngu then reported him to the North Bank Police Station, accusing him of publishing allegations against her without evidence. Yaaya said the development later turned the complaint against him into an investigation of the original allegations after he presented evidence and facilitated a WhatsApp conversation between the police and the alleged victims in Ghana. Terngu was subsequently arrested and the matter transferred to the State CID. She was remanded at the Yaikyor Correctional Facility in Makurdi over alleged human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
Yaaya stated that his demands throughout the investigation were the safe return of the alleged victims to Benue, medical examination for them, financial assistance to enable them start businesses, and an end to any further exploitation. He said the initial lawyer representing Terngu reportedly agreed to an arrangement that would facilitate the return of the 13 girls, but the position allegedly changed after Barr. J.T. Tarkaa took over the case. Yaaya alleged that Tarkaa opposed the arrangement to bring the girls back to Nigeria, while Terngu also changed her account, reportedly claiming that she did not know the girls and could not transport them home.
With support from the Benue State Government through Benue Links Nig. Ltd., Yaaya said he spent about N1.2 million to facilitate the transportation of four of the alleged victims from Ghana to Nigeria to support the prosecution of the case. The four girls underwent medical examinations and made statements to the police before being taken to court to witness the ruling on the bail application. The court granted Terngu bail subject to conditions, including the deposit of N5 million out of a N10 million bail sum, provision of two sureties and submission of her travel documents. Yaaya stated that Terngu was unable to meet the bail conditions.
He alleged that Barr. Tarkaa became angry over the presence of the four girls at the court and attempted to confront him physically. “Where’s my wrong please,” Yaaya wrote, questioning why his decision to bring the alleged victims to court had become a source of confrontation. He said he recorded a short video of the alleged confrontation and forwarded it to the Chairman of the Nigerian Bar Association, Makurdi Branch, for appropriate action. Yaaya also disclosed that his lawyers were preparing to approach the High Court and file a fundamental rights enforcement suit on behalf of the alleged victims. He maintained that his intervention was motivated by the need to protect vulnerable Benue youths and combat human trafficking, declaring: “No more human trafficking activities in Benue State.”
The allegations against Terngu and Barr. Tarkaa have not been independently established in court, and the accused persons remain entitled to due process and the presumption of innocence until proven otherwise.
