The United Nations Migration Agency, International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has stated that more than 1,000 Nigerians have fallen victim to scams involving foreign job opportunities in the United Kingdom.
Boeck noted that some of the victims lost as much as $10,000 each in their desperate attempts to secure foreign jobs.
He said victims are stranded in the UK because some of them lack the means to come back, while others are ashamed of coming back to their families.
IOM’s Chief of Mission, Laurent De Boeck, disclosed this at a news conference yesterday in Abuja.
“There are some of them who lost over $10,000 only to be given fake employment letters, which allowed them to get visas.”
“They get there, present the letters, and the organisations tell them that the letters did not emanate from the organisations. Over a thousand people are affected,” he stated.
He also disclosed that over 260,000 Nigerians had approached the agency in 2023 seeking guidance on how to migrate through regular or approved routes and also undergoing pre-departure medical health assessments.
Boeck added that IOM is working with partners to repatriate thousands of people, including Nigerians, from Tunisia, which has recently placed a ban on migration.
