Officials of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) have arrested four women for allegedly selling a newborn for N1,500,000.
NAPTIP arrested three of the women near Abuja, while the fourth suspect was apprehended in Owerri, Imo State capital, where the baby’s teenage mother hails from.
Two of the women, Bernadette Ihezuo and Cecilia Onyema, are civil servants with the Federal Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in Abuja respectively.
The third suspect, Okasi Ekeoma, is said to be Onyema’s sister, while the fourth suspect is the baby’s grandmother Harrieth Nmezi who resides in Imo state.
According to NAPTIP officials, the teenage girl got pregnant while staying with her mother who then took her to Onyema’s residence where she lived until she delivered her baby. Immediately after delivery, the other women took the child from the young mother and sold off the baby.
They were arrested following a tipoff received by some members of the public and paraded before newsmen on Thursday, September 3.
The baby has been rescued while the suspects have confessed to the crime and will be arraigned in court soon.
In the same vein, officials of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Kwara State have arrested a woman and an alleged accomplice in connection with the trafficking of a 15-year-old girl.
The woman simply identified as Madam Hauwa and Bala Suleiman were said to have brought the teenager from Togo to Nigeria.
Two non-government organisations, Women Environment and Youth Development Initiatives (WOYODEV) and Child Protection Network (CPN-Kwara) brought the case to the attention of the civil defence corps in the state.
They said the victim was taken from Togo to Nigeria to work as a house-help.
Hauwa was alleged to have been bringing in children from neighbouring countries to work in Nigeria, telling them to abscond from their principals and switch to new employers.
