Intelligent GPS and Sensor Controlled Tracker and Locator for

Human Trafficking, Kidnapping, Banditry and Theft Control in Nigeria

Prevalent kidnappings for various nefarious purposes have resulted in

an unprecedented rise in insecurity of lives and properties in Nigeria.

Added to these are other vices such as cattle rustling and banditry,

through which the lives and economy of many Nigerians ’are gradually

being ruined. To control this trend, security operatives need location

and operational information of perpetrators of these nefarious crimes

in real time. This study developed a real-time tracking system using the

Global Positioning System (GPS), a sensor-based module, a

microcontroller, and a proximity sensor to determine the location of

the lost item or person and to relay findings to the communication

device (smartphone or tablet) of the designated rescue team. For the

software development, C++ and PHP were used to code and configure

the microcontroller (ATMEGA 8), the GSM message command, the

NMEA Messaging 101 protocol command, and the Google Maps API.

Findings showed that the tracker device was able to accurately detect

a ‘missing’ (hidden) item or human, provided the locator device is not

separated from the human or item. Location Detection Accuracy (LDA)

success was 98% (49/50) for the 50 test cases with a 2% (1/50) error

rate associated with low battery (below 20%). The average proximity

detection distance (PDD) accuracy was approximately 1.6 m. Further

studies should focus on improving proximity accuracy, further

miniaturising the tracker device for effective concealment, and

adopting more secure communication protocols.