Adeola Omotoso, daughter of veteran Nollywood actress Jumoke George, has opened up about her harrowing experience after being trafficked to Mali and forced into prostitution.
In a recent interview, Adeola revealed that her ordeal began when someone she trusted offered her a job opportunity in Mali, claiming it involved managing a pharmacy.
Unbeknownst to her, the journey would lead to human trafficking and exploitation.
“I met someone who told me about a job in Mali,” she said. “She claimed a pharmacist needed someone to help manage a business.
I agreed and left without telling anyone at home. We traveled by road for four days through Cotonou, Togo, Ghana, and other countries until we reached Bamako.”
Upon arrival in the Malian capital, Adeola contacted the person she had been referred to, only to be told she had been “bought” by a woman who claimed to be her new “madam.”
“She said she bought me from my sister and that I would have to work as a prostitute to repay 1.5 million CFA francs,” Adeola recalled. “I was shocked and told her I couldn’t do it.
She took my phone and travel documents and threatened me when I refused.”
According to Adeola, she was later taken to a brothel, but managed to escape with the help of a kind man who arranged for her to work as a food vendor in another area.
“While working at the food stand, I saw and heard terrible stories—many Nigerian girls dying because of prostitution,” she said. “I just wanted to survive and raise some money so I wouldn’t return home empty-handed. I was ashamed to call my mum or my children.”
Having been missing for four years, Adeola said she often felt hopeless. “I told my roommate not to post my photo if I died. But somehow, I survived.
I don’t know how good my mum is before God, but I believe it’s her prayers that saved me from all the evil that could have happened.”
Adeola has since been reunited with her mother in Nigeria.