The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has dismissed claims that its operatives “abducted” children from an orphanage in Asaba, Delta State, describing the June 2025 operation as a lawful rescue mission.
Speaking at a media briefing in Abuja on Friday, the Director-General of NAPTIP, Binta Adamu Bello, explained that the agency acted on credible intelligence linking the proprietor of Happy Home Children Orphanage, Mr. Christopher Ogugua Nwoye, to the trafficking of children stolen from Gombe and Kano states.
According to Bello, NAPTIP operatives rescued eight children during the operation, including one identified by her biological mother as Aisha Buhari, a child missing from Kano.
“It is important to restate that the rescue operation by operatives of the Agency at Happy Home Orphanage was not an abduction. NAPTIP does not engage in such condemnable action but a lawful undertaking under the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement and Administration Act, 2015,” she said.
The DG noted that the operation followed a petition from the group Protection Against Abduction and Missing Children (PATAMOC), which has been working with the Kano State Government to trace over 600 missing children.
She explained that prior to the raid, NAPTIP secured the cooperation of the Delta State Police Command, and officers from the B’ Division in Asaba escorted the team during the exercise.
“All attempts made to get the proprietor to make himself available for interview have failed. Instead, he has resorted to blackmail against the agency and organizing women to lay claims to the children now in our custody,” Bello stated.
The DG confirmed that while some parents in Kano and Gombe have identified the children, others in Delta State have also made counterclaims. As a result, the rescued minors are being kept at a secure NAPTIP shelter pending the conclusion of DNA testing.
She added that three suspects — Hauwa Abubakar, Nkechi Odlyne, and Christopher Ogugua Nwoye — are already facing prosecution at the Gombe State High Court for allegedly buying and selling trafficked children.
Bello urged all claimants to come forward for proper investigation instead of “running around on social media and blackmailing the agency.”
“NAPTIP is a law-abiding agency that believes in the rule of law. However, we will not spare anyone found culpable in this matter,” she warned.
The DG also called on the Delta State Government to investigate activities at the Happy Home Orphanage, which she said has been linked to “unwholesome practices.”
NAPTIP pledged to conclude its investigations, prosecute offenders, and reunite the children with their lawful families.
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