The Anambra State police command, Wednesday, paraded a-55 year old suspected child trafficker, Mrs Nkechi Odinye.
The state police public relations officer (PPRO), CSP Haruna Muhammed, who disclosed this in a statement, said Odinye, was arrested at Obosi in Idemili North local government area, Anambra state.
“The Suspect had hitherto evaded arrest for over three years by changing locations until her arrest. The team equally recovered sixteen other children of various age brackets, comprising ten boys and six girls, reasonably suspected to have been stolen from different parts of the country under her custody,” he said.
According to him, Odinye was unmasked by three female suspected traffickers arrested on October 22, 2019 with three children suspected to have been stolen.
“Investigations revealed that the children were stolen from Gombe State by one Hauwa Usman ‘f” on the 20/10/2019 and brought to her accomplices in Anambra State. Following the Public announcement by the Command on the 27/10/2019, parents of the two kids from Gombe State came to Awka and identified their children.
“Both the suspect and the found children were handed over to the Gombe State Police Command where four of the children were identified and reunited with their biological parents after exhaustive investigation and forensic analysis, including DNA tests. Also one of them was handed over to the parents in Asaba, Delta state.
“Upon interrogation by the police in Gombe state, suspects voluntarily confessed that they usually steal the children and bring to their sponsor, one Mrs Nkechi Odinye, here in Anambra state, who buys each child at the rate of between two hundred and four hundred thousand naira depending on their age bracket and gender,” he said.
He, however said 11 out of the unclaimed children were on January 18, 2021, returned to the state police command by the Gombe state police command, and they were subsequently handed over to the Anambra State Ministry for Social Welfare, Women’s and Children’s Affairs, for safe keeping until their biological parents were identified.
“The command now has a total number of 18 unclaimed children rescued from suspected child traffickers. Anyone with useful information about the found children should report at Area Command Onitsha, 3-3 Divisional Police Station, Nkwelle Ezunaka, or contact the PPRO, Anambra State Police Command, through GSM no 08060970639, please,” Muhammed stated.
