Below is a statement from Angus Thomas, founder of Stop Trafficking Africa, following the miscarriage of justice that saw Nigerian judge, Justice Folashade Adekoke Adesiyan Olubanjo, a female judge, disregard the law and offer Gold a fine instead of a custodial sentence for six counts of human trafficking. Thomas brought the case of Christy Gold to NAPTIP in January 2020 after a chance encounter with a Nigerian victim of convicted human trafficker, Christy Gold, whilst on holiday in Dubai. This led him to set up Stop Trafficking Africa, (formerly Send Them Home), and subsequently the Hope Edducation Project in Ghana, a human trafficking education and awareness program for schools and communities in Tamale, Northern Region, Ghana.

“I have spent the last four and a half years working relentlessly to bring Christy Gold to justice on behalf of the women she trafficked. In early 2020, I provided the Nigerian authorities and UAE police with detailed intelligence on her location and properties. I personally supported the rescue of several women from her trafficking network and stood by them as they bravely testified, at great personal risk, in court.

To see Christy Gold handed a sentence that includes an option to pay a fine instead of serving prison time and to hear the presiding judge admit that this sentence does not comply with the mandatory minimums set by Nigerian law is nothing short of a betrayal.

Under Section 15(b) of the Trafficking in Persons Act (2015), the punishment for Gold’s crime is not less than five years’ imprisonment and a fine. This is not optional. The sentence handed down, twelve years with an option of a fine, ignores the letter of the law and gives a convicted sex trafficker the chance to buy her freedom for a pittance.

Even more troubling, the judge appears to have misunderstood the prosecution’s request for victim compensation as justification for a non-custodial sentence. Let me be absolutely clear: compensation is not justice in place of prison, it is justice in addition to it.

The message this decision sends to traffickers, to survivors and to the world is devastating. After being convicted in March 2024, Christy Gold absconded and continued to flaunt her wealth and impunity online – a lifestyle built on the violent sexual exploitation of young women. Even after showing contempt for the justice system and her victims, she has now been allowed to walk free, to once again enjoy the proceeds of her crimes. This outcome makes a mockery of Nigeria’s robust anti-trafficking laws and tarnishes the nation’s global standing.

I call on NAPTIP and the Attorney-General of the Federation to immediately appeal this unlawful sentence and restore confidence in the legal system. Anything less than a full custodial sentence for Christy Gold not only betrays the years of work, sacrifice and courage that brought this case to trial but also makes a mockery of the law.

I stand with the survivors. I stand with the law. And I will not stop speaking out until justice is done.”