The Gombe state police command has arrested a 55-year old former Councillor from Ndemili North local government area of Anambra state, Nkechi Odiliyen over alleged child-trafficking.
The Police commissioner in the state, Maikudi Shehu who disclosed this while briefing the press on Monday said that the suspect, Nkechi has been on the run since 2017.
The Commissioner said that the arrest of the suspect followed efforts put by Governor Mohammadu Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe state who provided the needed logistics to the police.
He said that the governor also provided feeding, medical care, accommodation and other necessary care to the trafficked children when they were recovered from the alleged suspect.
According to the CP, Nkechi was arrested alongside three accomplices, a man and two women.
CP Maikudi who said twelve children were recovered from the suspects added that the ring leader, Nkechi had during interrogation confessed to have sold eleven children to some merchants from Asaba in Delta State.
Nkechi, who explained that she was running an official motherless babies home in Anambra confessed to trading in children.
She said, “I buy male children for N300,000 and female for N250,000. But I sell each for N750,000 to interested buyers.”
One of her accomplices, Hauwa Abubakar from Gombe state, confessed to occassional selling of the trafficked children to ritualists.
Hauwa said she had supplied Nkechi with seven abducted children.
Faith Nkpor, another suspect who had been in remand for over a year said she once bought two male children from the syndicate.
The Gombe state government through the Commissioner for internal security, Dauda Batari attributed the rampant cases of child-trafficking to the operations of illegal motor parks, promising government’s action.
His women affairs counterpart, Naomi Awak described it as traumatic the agony of three years separation of children and parents.
