The Ondo State Police Command has arrested three suspects allegedly involved in child trafficking following a successful sting operation.
The suspects, identified as Lukman Isiaka, 43; Abosede Olanipekun, 23; and Sabira Izuorah, 68, were apprehended with at least 14 babies and toddlers believed to have been stolen from Akure, the state capital, and Ilesa, Osun State.
The children were recovered from Izuorah’s so-called ‘orphanage’ in Ihiala, Anambra State, where they had been trafficked by Lukman and Abosede, who are a couple. Among the recovered infants were children as young as two weeks to two months old.
During a parade at the police headquarters in Akure, Izuorah, who claimed to have retired as a Director from the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs in Anambra State, admitted to receiving the children from the couple. She stated, “I have a registered orphanage called Clarion Children’s Care and Reforms Initiatives, which started full operation in 2020. Lukman and his wife brought a total of 11 children to me. I don’t pay them; it is the adoptive parents who pay them. The adoptive parents provide food items and supplies instead.”
Izuorah claimed she stopped accepting children from Lukman and his wife in November 2024, asserting, “All the children were no longer with me, but I went to recover them from their adoptive parents. This operation did not start with me, and it will not end with me.”
Lukman, a bricklayer, confessed to being involved in the crime since 2023, stating that Izuorah introduced him and his wife to the illicit trade after he moved to Anambra for work. He revealed that Izuorah paid him ₦500,000 for each child, which she then sold to prospective buyers for ₦1 million or more.
He explained the method he used to abduct children: “I have been stealing children since 2023. My wife and I would see children wandering about and lure them in by promising soft drinks and biscuits. Once they followed us, we would take them to a bike, then board a vehicle to Anambra State to deliver them to Izuorah. She gave us ₦500,000 for each child we brought to her.”
Lukman maintained that he was unaware of the origins of the two-month-old and four-month-old babies, insisting that Izuorah would have that information. He further stated, “I only operate in Akure, Ondo State, and Ilesa, Osun State.”
The Commissioner of Police in the State, Wilfred Afolabi, praised the police operatives for their efforts in rescuing the victims, emphasizing that intelligence-led policing was key to the operation’s success. Lukman and Abosede were traced to Ottah village in Edo State, where they were arrested, and they subsequently led police to Anambra State to apprehend Izuorah.
Afolabi explained that a report of a missing child was filed at the Okuta Elerin-Nla Division in Akure. The complainant alleged that Abosede deceived her by claiming she wanted to buy biscuits for the baby while Lukman distracted her with conversation. When the complainant returned to the shop, she discovered her child was missing, leading to the police report.
During interrogation, the suspects confessed to abducting the child and other children from Ondo and Osun States and selling them to Sabira Izuorah in Ihiala, Anambra State, for ₦1 million each.
The police commissioner noted that some children remain missing and that efforts are ongoing to locate and rescue them. He added that the suspects would be charged in court upon completion of the investigation.
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