Eight people who were involved in child trafficking were arrested, and five victims were rescued by the Makurdi branch of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).
The head of NAPTIP Makurdi Zonal Command, Bai Gloria Iveren, stated on Saturday that they conducted the operation in response to a desperate call from a mother searching for her twins. Shockingly, she learned that her children had supposedly been sold in December 2023.
She explained that the NAPTIP team carried out careful surveillance and rescue missions in various parts of Makurdi city. During their investigations, they discovered that the syndicate had a specific method of operation.
She said they used to target homes, particularly those belonging to vulnerable individuals or even internally displaced persons (IDP) camps. They would pretend to be offering assistance for education sponsorship, but in reality, they were involved in illegal activities.
Iveren clarified that the suspects took advantage of the trust of innocent families. They would gain custody of children and later sell them, disguising the transactions as adoptions. The prices for these transactions varied, ranging from N50,000 to N900,000 per child.
Iveren also mentioned that all the victims who were rescued have been safely reunited with their families. Legal actions against the suspects are currently in progress.
The arrested suspects include an 80-year-old woman named Innocent Josephine and a 56-year-old woman named Ude Rosaline, who were identified as important figures in the illegal network. Other members of the network were arrested, including Samuel Takura (50), Williams Minde (35), Celina Obiasogu (52), Virginia Okonkwo (50), Anthonia Onura (60), and Ede Sunday Ngozi (52).