By Damilola Origbemisuyi, Akure
The Ondo State Police Command has apprehended 3 members of a syndicate who specialize in child stealing and trafficking in Ihiala, Anambra State which led to the rescue of four babies and 10 children from the syndicate.
The State Commissioner of Police, Wilfred Afolabi, stated this on Sunday while parading the suspects alongside other arrested criminals at the police headquarters in Akure, the state capital.
Afolabi noted that the suspects, identified as Madam Sarah Sabira Izuorah (68), Yusuf Lookman (36), and Bose Olanipekun (23), were arrested following a report of child theft in the Okuta Elerinla area, a police division in Akure.
According to him, the report led to the arrest of the suspects and rescue of the stolen children.
He said “A case of a missing child was reported at Okuta Elerin-Nla Division in Akure. The complainant reported that a man, Samuel Adejobi (real name: Lukman Isiaka, m, age 42 years), and a woman, Ewatomi (real name: Abosede Olanipekun), came to her shop pretending to be siblings to eat, while playing with the complainant’s child, Abosede deceived her by claiming she wanted to buy biscuits for the baby.
“Meanwhile, Lukman distracted the complainant by engaging her in a personal conversation and requested she followed her to Olukayode plaza in the market to get a mobile phone, on getting to the market area, he abandoned her and left, on getting back to the shop, the complainant discovered that her child was missing with no trace of Abosede the supposed sister of the man she followed to the market, thus a report was made at the Division.
“Through intelligence-led policing, the suspects were traced to Ottah Village in Edo State, where they were arrested.
During interrogation, the suspects admitted to abducting the child and other children from Ondo and Osun States and selling them to one. Sabira Izuorah ‘f’ age 68 years in Ihiala, Anambra State, at the rate of One Million Naira (₦1,000,000) per child.
“Subsequently, Sabina was arrested in Ihiala and the 4 babies ranking from two weeks old to five months old were found in her custody. Also, on the 14th of January 2025, ten children sold by Mrs. Izuorah were rescued from various locations. Some children are currently on the missing list while efforts are ongoing to locate and rescue them.”
The CP noted that some parents have identified their children among the rescued victims. Afolabi urged members of the public who have fallen victim to child theft to visit the command to check if their children are among the rescued.
One of the suspects, Isiaka Lukman, narrated that he has been in the business of stealing children since 2023. He claimed to have stolen 11 children so far and sold each at the rate of N500, 000 to Sabira Izuorah.
According to him, they (him and his girlfriend) usually deceived the children with cookies, sweets, chew gum and cartoons.
“We usually call the children to come, let’s buy ‘bobo’ for them, if they follow us, we will stop bike and carry them on the bike to park. When we get to park, we will enter motor to Anambra State to go and sell them to her(Mrs Izuorah). She usually give us 500,000 as reward for each child. I was introduced into the business by Mrs Izuorah” Lukman narrated.
In her defense, Mrs Izuorah, who claimed to have retired as a director from the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs in Anambra State, claimed to run a registered orphanage.
According to her, the babies recovered from her were kept in her custody by their parents. She further said that the couple that brought children to her claimed that the children were abandoned children.
