Daud Olatunji
A suspected member of a child-stealing and trafficking syndicate in Oyo State, Adejoke Popoola, has confessed to selling two sets of children she gave birth to and allegedly stealing 19 other children for onward sale.
Popoola, who was paraded alongside other suspects by the Oyo State Police Command in Ibadan on Monday, said she had been involved in child trafficking since October 2024.
The suspect claimed she sold a newborn boy and a set of twins, adding that the twins were sold to a clinic in Ogeere for N300,000.
She said she sometimes received between N80,000 and N120,000 for each child sold.
According to her, she entered the illegal business after experiencing difficulty raising pregnancies she did not want.
The suspect, who said she had seven children of her own, also confessed to stealing children by gaining access to homes under the guise of looking for accommodation.
“I steal babies. I will go to their place and say I want to rent a house. Then, if I do not see anyone, if I see their children, I will just steal their children,” she said.
Popoola further alleged that she was taught how to steal children by a woman she worked with at Ogeere Market.
She also disclosed that she sometimes disguised herself as a spiritualist to gain the confidence of parents, particularly those with children living with disabilities.
The suspect said she would promise such parents that she could help their children, before allegedly using the opportunity to steal another child.
Her confession formed part of an investigation by the Oyo State Police Command into a suspected interstate child-stealing and trafficking network.
The Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Olugbenga, said the investigation began following a petition dated July 29, 2026, but later uncovered a wider network involved in the alleged stealing, movement, sale and concealment of children.
One of the major leads in the investigation was the disappearance of a three-year-old boy, Ifakunle Ifagbenro, during an Egungun festival in Oyo town on June 29.
Olugbenga said police investigators obtained photographs and video recordings from the event which allegedly showed Popoola carrying the missing child.
The suspect was subsequently arrested on August 4.
According to the CP, Popoola allegedly admitted leaving the festival with the child and subsequently disclosed her involvement in the theft of more than 15 children, mostly aged between two and seven.
The children were allegedly stolen from churches, parties and other public gatherings within and outside Oyo State.
The police said Popoola also identified Adekanbi Janet, popularly known as Hosanna, as an alleged accomplice.
Janet was traced to Mowe, Ogun State, where detectives reportedly rescued four children aged between two and four years and two pregnant young women.
The police said the investigation indicated that some stolen children were kept in custody pending their sale, while the pregnant women were allegedly housed until they delivered their babies.
Information obtained from Janet reportedly helped the police locate Ifakunle, who was rescued in the Gbagi area of Ibadan on August 20.
The investigation subsequently extended beyond the South-West.
On September 2, detectives travelled to Agbor, Delta State, where four children allegedly stolen from Oyo State were rescued from persons suspected of having bought them.
Two suspects, Christopher Joy, 48, and Rosemary Jesse, 53, were arrested in connection with the operation.
The police said the development confirmed that the suspected trafficking operation had an interstate dimension.
The investigation also took a disturbing turn following allegations that some children who died while in the custody of the suspects were allegedly sold to suspected ritualists.
The police said the disclosure led to the arrest of two additional suspects identified as Muritala Fasasi, an Alfa, and Yakubu Azeez, a herbalist.
Olugbenga said the command had so far rescued 17 children in connection with the investigation.
He added that six children reportedly died while in the custody of their alleged abductors.
The deceased were identified by the police as Musharaf Lawal Tajudeen, two; Greatness Adeagbo, five; Sainat Amoo, two; Taiwo Usman, two; Daniel Solomon Olayinka, seven; and Miracle Olaniyi, four.
Meanwhile, the police commissioner urged parents and guardians whose children had gone missing recently to visit the command headquarters at Eleyele, Ibadan, to check whether any of the rescued children were their wards.
Olugbenga said the move was aimed at facilitating the identification and reunification of the rescued children with their families.
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