The fraudulent job scheme promised overseas jobs in football with top foreign teams, job placements abroad, or visa assistance.
When the Ghanaian victims arrived, their phones and travel documents were confiscated, and they were kept in cramped and unconducive quarters, according to a statement from the police.
To obtain approximately $1,000 (£727) under the pretense of paying training or facilitation costs, the victims were forced to contact their relatives.
As reported by the BBC, the police statement also revealed that the scammers conned the victims’ friends and family by using their phone contact lists.
Lydia Yaako Donkor, head of Ghana’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID), revealed that the rescue mission was conducted with the aid of Interpol and Nigerian law enforcement agencies.
The victims were rescued from numerous states in Nigeria, between May 19 and June 27 of this year, and they have not yet been sent back to Ghana to be with their relatives.
So far, around 7 Ghanaians have been arrested in connection with the scam.
“The psychological and economic harm caused to these victims and their families is devastating,” Ghana’s CID head stated, adding that in many cases, the victims are “so malnourished and psychologically affected” that they are unable to resume their normal lives.
The international lifestyle and wellness marketing firm QNET, which was allegedly associated with the recruitment scam, has been prohibited from doing business in Ghana since 2022 due to allegations that it operated a Ponzi scheme.
On several occasions, the company has refuted any role in the conspiracy.
The police disclosed that they are working to find the culprits involved in the scam, as Lydia Donkor warns families to confirm offers of high-paying jobs and overseas schooling before accepting them.