I sell my child due to hunger, Mother Confess

LAGOS, Nigeria - A 22-year-old woman, Faith Sunday, has been detained in Lagos on allegations of child trafficking after admitting to selling her one-year-old son for N1.5 million to alleviate her hunger crisis.

Faith was arrested along with seven other members of a child-trafficking ring by investigators from the Zone 2 Police Command headquarters in Onikan, Lagos, under the leadership of Ngozi Braide.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  In her statement to the police, Faith mentioned, “I sold my son in September 2024 to a buyer through Mrs. Ibezim Chioma and Mr. Sunday Okputu.

The buyer, residing in the Alissa area of Ikeja, paid me N1.5 million. I resorted to selling my child because of hunger. My plan was to use the money to start a business.”

DCP Ajao S. Adewale, who heads the Zonal Anti-Crime Unit in Zone 2, Onikan, Lagos, showcased the suspects over the weekend, noting that the arrests were based on intelligence gathered by the Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), Adegoke Fayoad.

Adewale disclosed that the investigation into the operations of the notorious child-trafficking group revealed their emphasis on the buying and selling of newborns, toddlers, and children of various ages.

He named Sunday Okputu as the source of the children, with Ibezim Chioma functioning as the middleman.

The duo actively sought potential buyers for their illegal and profitable venture. Furthermore, one Mrs. Chinasa Echellibe was recognized as the caregiver who cared for the children while waiting for buyers.

During the operation led by Ngozi Braide, five children were rescued from the syndicate. Among them was one-year-old Marvelous Obi, who was sold to Ibezim Chioma when he was just a week old.

Chioma then sold him to Mrs. Ken Obi and Mrs. Appulus Marina Oluchi, who currently lives in Italy but had left him under the care of Chinasa Echellibe, the caregiver for the group.

Three-year-old Promise Ifekwuna was sold to Mrs. Ifekwuna Ngozi for N500,000 by the leader of the ring, Sunday Okputu, in 2021. Another child, Somtochukwu, was discovered in the care of Nwakuba Helen Chinyere, who claimed to be simply a nanny hired by her sister, Caroline Enwereji, living in California, USA.