3 Nigerians, 5 Ghanaians arrested for ‘abducting’ 2 Canadian Women (Photo)

Three Nigerians and 5 Ghanaians have been arrested in connection with the kidnapping of two Canadian women who were abducted in Ghana earlier this month.

The pair were named as Lauren Tilley, 19, and Bailey Chitty, 20, by Youth Challenge International, an international development organisation headquartered in Toronto.

“Bailey and Lauren are receiving emotional and psychological support from professionals as they travel home. Medical reports are that they are both physically unhurt,” the group said in a statement.

Ghanaian information minister, Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, said that the rescue operation began overnight Tuesday and lasted less than half an hour.

Kidnappings for ransom have been all too common for years in Nigeria, and officials in Ghana say they are on the rise there too.

Nigerian suspects have been involved in all four high-profile kidnappings, in what analysts say point to an influx of Nigerian-style crimes in Ghana.

Ghana has long been considered one of the least dangerous countries in West Africa, but the women’s abductions marked the second time in a month that foreigners had been targeted in Kumasi.