Alleged Kingpin of Multi-Million Dollar Human Trafficking Syndicate Arrested in Ethiopia After Global Manhunt

Ethiopian police have arrested Yetbarek Dawit, the alleged leader of a trafficking network that tortured thousands in Libya and extorted $19M.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 8, 2026, 7:04 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from BBC Africa

The Takedown in Shire

In a major breakthrough for international law enforcement, Ethiopian police arrested Yetbarek Dawit and nine accomplices in the northern town of Shire, Tigray. The arrest concludes a sophisticated, cross-border investigation supported by the EU-funded Regional Operational Centre (Rock). The group, which includes seven men and three women, was transported to Addis Ababa on Monday to face interrogation for crimes dating back to 2018.

A Network of Aliases and Exploitation

Investigators revealed that Yetbarek utilized a complex web of identities to evade capture across the continent and in Europe. He was known as "Adhanom" in Sudan, "Ahmed" in Djibouti and Somalia, "Munir" in Kenya, and "Kibrom" in Sweden. Using advanced tracking technology and testimonies from over 100 victims across Europe and North America, police were able to pierce his anonymity. Authorities have since frozen the group’s bank accounts and confiscated properties linked to the estimated $19 million in criminal proceeds.

The 'Living Hell' of Libyan Warehouses

The core of the syndicate's operations involved five detention warehouses in Libya. Since 2018, the network is alleged to have lured more than 3,000 young people from Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan, Somalia, Djibouti, and Kenya with the promise of safe passage to Europe. Once in Libya, migrants were held in brutal conditions.