'Slave' Ship Docks, No Sign of Children

April 17 -- A ship thought loaded with child slaves docked in Benin late Monday — but there were no signs of the children.

Footage from Cotonou showed soldiers and aid workers escorting passengers from the Nigerian-registered MV Etireno. But none of these passengers appeared to be slaves.

"A ship that bears the name of the ship that everyone was looking for, has turned up at the port in Benin, and there were people aboard — just not the children that everone expected," said Alfred Ironside of the United Nations Children's Fund. "It turns out there were families and very young infants aboard, and all of them looked very safe and sound."

But that doesn't have aid workers and other observers relieved. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Some fear Etireno Capt. Lawrence Onome — a man reportedly with a shady criminal past — may have dumped his human cargo — between 100 and 250 children, according to some reports — into the sea.

However, it is also possible that the slaves were dumped off somewhere else, or placed aboard a second ship.

Onome denied the charges.

"I have not committed any offense that will warrant my arrest," the Nigerian captain told APTN. "I am not into child slavery, they can't prove it. It is one thing to say and one thing to prove."

If They Exist, They May Not Be Found

The BBC is reporting that many on the scene now believe that the slave children — if they do indeed exist — may already be on their way to a life of indentured servitude. If they are on a second ship, they may be impossible to find — without a name or even location, ships are incredibly difficult to track.

Also, there was another mystery surrounding the ship. Early reports said the slave-carrying Etireno was a decrepit rusted hulk. But the white, 200-foot-long ferry that turned up in Benin bearing the name "Etireno" was freshly painted — with the name "Nordby" still visible beneath, according to the Associated Press.

Onome said the name was changed in 1999, but didn't have documents to prove it, the news organization reported. The ship was carrying 139 passengers, some of whom appeared frightened.