The four Nigerians traveled more than 5,500 kilometers by hiding in the helm of a merchant ship that had left Nigeria for Brazil, where they were found and rescued under difficult conditions. The rescue took place off the coast of the Brazilian state of Espírito Santo when a ship bound for the port of Santos on the coast of the state of Sao Paulo stopped for a crew change.
The crew members who arrived from land, when approaching the ship, noticed the presence of stowaways in the steering compartment and warned the captain of the ship about this, who, in turn, informed the Brazilian authorities. Espírito Santo federal police NCIS core agents boarded a merchant ship and rescued the Nigerians.
They were very weak, very hungry and dehydrated, as they left Lagos, the capital of Nigeria, with only three days of food, and the journey had already lasted 13. They were all taken to a hotel, where they would await a response to any application for asylum in Brazil, and, if they do not receive it, they will be deported to their country of origin.
None of the four men had identification with them, so the federal police will seek help from the Nigerian police to confirm the identity of the illegal immigrants. A detail that makes the odyssey of sailing for 13 days without any health or safety conditions in the helm even more dramatic: Two stowaways told Brazilian agents that they couldn’t swim, which would inevitably lead to their death. if they fell overboard during a dangerous ocean crossing.