Police Recover Stolen Child Sold For ₦3.7m In Ondo
Police Rescue Missing 4-Year-Old, Bust Child-Trafficking Syndicate in Ondo, Delta, and Anambra
Police operatives in Ondo State have rescued a missing four-year-old girl and uncovered a major child-trafficking syndicate operating across three states.
The case was first reported on February 3, 2025, when a resident of Alagbaka Extension, Akure, Mr. Sunday Kingsley, informed the police that his daughter, Jesinta Sunday, went missing while staying with her mother, Mrs. Sunday Happiness.
According to the Command’s spokesman, SP Olusola Ayanlade, the case was immediately transferred to the Monitoring Unit at the State Command Headquarters for discreet investigation. He explained that the matter was charged before the Family Magistrate Court, which initially led to the remand of the child’s mother, Sunday Happiness, and one Mrs. Nneka Onah, at the Ondo Correctional Centre before they were later granted bail.
The breakthrough came on July 9, 2025, when Kingsley alerted the police that his missing daughter had been sighted in Asaba, Delta State. Acting swiftly, detectives from the Gender Desk Team moved in, recovered the child, and reunited her safely with her family in Akure.
Further investigations exposed a child-trafficking syndicate behind the abduction. One of the suspects, 30-year-old Amaka Chukwuemeka, was arrested and confessed to buying the child for ₦3.7 million. She disclosed that her friend, Chinaza Owoh (38), introduced her to Mabel Esimai (58), who handed over the child under the pretense of adoption using forged documents.
Esimai, upon arrest, admitted she received the child from Chioma Okechukwu (37) with instructions to find a buyer.
Commending the Gender Desk Team, the Commissioner of Police, CP Adebowale Lawal, praised their swift and effective operation. He assured that investigations would continue to track down all collaborators, stressing that those involved would face prosecution.
Lawal further reassured the public of the Command’s resolve to rid the state of criminal elements.
“Ondo State cannot and will not be a safe haven for child traffickers or any criminal syndicate,” the Commissioner declared.