Abubakar, a dual citizen of Nigeria and Australia, was detained on Wednesday at Brisbane Airport upon her arrival from PNG, where she had been primarily based.

A 56-year-old Nigerian-Australian woman, Binta Abubakar, has been arrested by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) for allegedly trafficking students from Papua New Guinea (PNG) and coercing them into unpaid labour on farms across Queensland under the guise of educational scholarships.

Abubakar, a dual citizen of Nigeria and Australia, was detained on Wednesday at Brisbane Airport upon her arrival from PNG, where she had been primarily based.

According to a statement released by the AFP on Thursday, she is accused of deceiving PNG nationals with promises of scholarships in Australia, only to force them into exploitative farm work once they arrived.

Authorities allege the victims were subjected to debt bondage and worked without pay in conditions that amounted to modern slavery.

The investigation revealed that the victims had little to no freedom and were allegedly compelled to work to "repay" debts associated with their travel and accommodation costs that were supposedly covered under the false scholarships.

Abubakar appeared before Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday afternoon and was charged with 31 offences, including multiple counts of human trafficking, debt bondage, and forced labour.

She was granted conditional bail and is scheduled to reappear before the court on September 19, 2025.

The statement read, "An investigation began in July 2022, when the AFP’s Northern Command Human Trafficking Team received information from Queensland Police about a group of PNG nationals who had moved to Australia to study but were instead allegedly forced to work against their will on farms.

“The woman allegedly lured them to Australia on the promise of full educational scholarships.”

However, AFP alleged that between March 2021 and July 2023, the woman took 15 PNG nationals to Australia.

It was reported that shortly before or after their arrival in Australia, the students were allegedly required to sign legal documents and agree to repay previously unmentioned costs associated with tuition, airfares, visa applications, insurance, and legal fees.

AFP noted that unexpected costs placed the PNG nationals in excessive debt.

The woman then allegedly forced the PNG nationals to work on farms at different locations in Queensland, at times in contravention of their visas, and received wages on their behalf from the farm owners.

Meanwhile, the woman withheld the wages from the workers as repayment for their debts.

AFP explained that Abubakar was charged with: Four counts of trafficking in persons, contrary to section 271.2(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is 12 years’ imprisonment;

"14 counts of deceptive recruiting for labour or services, contrary to section 270.7 of the Criminal Code (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is seven years’ imprisonment; and 13 counts of engaging in conduct that caused a person to enter into debt bondage, contrary to section 270.7C of the Criminal Code (Cth). The maximum penalty for this offence is four years’ imprisonment."

AFP Detective Superintendent Adrian Telfer said the AFP remained committed to protecting vulnerable foreign workers who are targeted by those driven by greed and profit.

“Victims of debt bondage and other human trafficking offences can be lured to Australia with a promise of a dream career or free education, things they may not have access to in their country of origin," Det-Supt Telfer said.

“If the conditions of that promise change, it can leave victims in an extremely vulnerable situation in a foreign country, where they are likely to have little financial or emotional support, and face issues with language barriers.

“The AFP can help people who are exploited and is focused on ensuring the welfare of victims," Telfer added.

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