Detectives from the Ondo State Police Command have at the weekend nabbed a three-member syndicate for allegedly specialising in child stealing and trafficking.
City and Crime reports that a couple were among the trio, who were apprehended following intelligence policing at Ottah village in Edo and Ihiala in Anambra States.
The suspects are: Lukman Isiaka, Abosede Olanipekun (both couples), and a 65 year-old, madam Sabira Izuorah.
Wilfred Afolabi, the Commissioner of Police in the State, who paraded the three suspects before reporters at the police headquarters in Akure at the weekend, said they were nabbed through intel.
Mr Afolabi said the suspects, who had been into the “criminal business” for some years, had trafficked scores of children, including infants, away from their unsuspecting parents.
He revealed that a total of 14 stolen children were recovered by detectives, who painstakingly trailed the suspects to their hideouts in local villages in Edo and Anambra states, where they are operating them.
The police boss also explained that the couple who had been operating in Ondo and Osun states sold the children to Madam Izuorah, who buy the kids between the rate of N500,000 and N1 million.
He added that the police got wind of the criminal activities of the suspects after complaints were lodged by a parent following the case of a missing child at the Okuta Elerin-Nla Police Division in Akure.
“A complainant reported that a man, Samuel Adejobi (real name: Lukman Isiaka, m age , 42 years), and a woman, Ewatomi (real name: Abosede Olanipekun), came to her shop pretending to be siblings to eat, while playing with the complainant’s child; Abosede deceived her by claiming she wanted to buy biscuits for the baby.
“Meanwhile, Lukman distracted the complainant by engaging her in a personal conversation and requested she follow her to Olukayode Plaza in the market to get a mobile phone.
“On getting to the market area, he abandoned her and left, on getting back to the shop, the complainant discovered that her child was missing with no trace of Abosede the supposed sister of the man she followed to the market, thus a report was made at the Division,” he said.
The police boss added, “Through intelligence-led policing, the suspects were traced to Ottah Village in Edo State, where they were arrested.
“During interrogation, the suspects admitted to abducting the child and other children from Ondo and Osun States and selling them to one Sabira Izuorah ‘f’ age 62 years) in Ihiala, Anambra State, at the rate of One Million Naira (N1,000,000) per child.
“Subsequently, Sabina was arrested in Ihiala, and the following babies were found in her custody. Some children are currently on the missing list, while efforts are ongoing to locate and rescue them.”
He listed the infants among the stolen children to include Baby Favour (female, 3 weeks old), Baby Chidera (female, 2 weeks old), Baby Chinyere (female, 2 months and 5 days old), 4.Baby Uzoma (male, 1 week old).
According to him, on the 14th of January 2025, ten children sold by Madam Izuorah were rescued from various locations.
He named the following children as they were identified by their parents as Dauda Alarape (male, 3½ years), Babalola David (male, 4 years), Asaolu Pamilerin (7 years), Ayomide Abass (male, 2 years, stolen from Orita-Obele, Akure), Komolafe Oluwasekemi (female, 4 years, stolen from Igado, Ilesha) and Adedeji Olalekan (male, 6½ years).
Others are: Ahmed Abdulrasaq (male, 5½ years, stolen from Ibodi Town, Osun State), Mary Wuraola (female, 2 years, stolen from Ilesha, Osun State), Mubarak Akinwunmi (male, 6 years, stolen from Osogbo, Osun State), and unknown child (name/parents yet to be identified, stolen from Osun State).
Afolabi vowed that the suspects would face prosecution, stressing that they would be charged to court after proper investigation must have been done.