The Oyo State Police Command says it has uncovered an interstate child-stealing and trafficking network, rescuing 17 children and arresting seven suspects in an investigation that also revealed the alleged deaths of six other children while in the custody of the suspects.
The Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Olugbenga, disclosed this on Monday during a press briefing at the command headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan, saying the investigation began with a petition but later exposed a wider criminal network allegedly involved in the stealing, movement, sale and concealment of children.
Mr Olugbenga said the investigation also uncovered allegations that the remains of children who died in the custody of their alleged abductors were sold to suspected ritualists.
“What commenced as an investigation into a petition has, through painstaking investigative work, uncovered a wider network extending beyond Oyo State, resulting in the rescue of 17 children and the arrest of seven suspects,” Mr Olugbenga said.
He said the investigation initially began with a petition dated 29 July submitted by Adejoke Popoola of Sogade area of Ariyo in Ibadan, over alleged conspiracy, cyberbullying, threat to life and defamation of character. The petition, however, was assigned to the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Squad on August 3.
