The United Nations Migration Agency, International Organization for Migration (IOM), has advised potential migrants to be cautious of a syndicate that specialises in offering fake employment letters to Nigerians seeking to work in the United Kingdom, UK
Of late, many Nigerians left for the United Kingdom for studies and work.
But it appears not all of them are experiencing what they had in mind before leaving.
Now the IOM is advising Nigerians to seek proper information before embarking on any migration.
The organisation says 260,000 Nigerians had approached it in 2023, seeking guidance on how to migrate through regular or approved routes and also undergoing pre-departure medical health assessments.
It said no fewer than a thousand Nigerians were stranded in the UK, having gotten visas based on the fake employment letters procured for them.
According to IOM this Nigerians were denied acceptance in the UK by the organisation whose letter they purportedly carry.
This happened because the letters did not emanate from those organisations, IOM stated.
IOM’s Chief of Mission, Mr Laurent De Boeck, disclosed this at a news conference on Monday in Abuja.
Job Scam
According to him, some of the victims lost as much as $10,000 each in their desperate attempts to secure foreign jobs in the UK.
He said they were consequently stranded in the UK because some of them lacked the means to come back, while others were ashamed of coming back to their families.
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“There are some of them who lost over $10,000 only to be given fake employment letters, which allowed them to get UK 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.
De Boeck also added that IOM was working with partners to repatriate thousands of persons, including Nigerians, from Tunisia, which has recently placed a ban on migration.
He said the IOM was working extensively with Italy to develop regular pathways for qualified Nigerians and that it would also engage other countries like Spain, Belgium, France, and others.
