Nigeria: Police Bust Child Trafficking Syndicate in Oyo, Rescue 17 Children

What the report says

Nigeria’s police said they have disrupted an alleged child-stealing and human trafficking network operating across Oyo, Ogun and Delta states, with 17 children rescued and seven suspects arrested. The account was reported by Vanguard and distributed by AllAfrica.

According to the police statement cited in the report, the investigation began after the disappearance of a three-year-old boy, Ifakunle Ifagbenro, during a masquerade festival in Oyo town on June 29, 2026. Detectives later arrested a woman identified as Adejoke Popoola, also known as Orente Alagbo, in early August. Police said her alleged disclosures helped lead them to other suspects and to children believed to have been moved across state lines.

The report says four children and two pregnant young women were found in the custody of another suspect in Mowe, Ogun State, and that Ifagunle was later recovered in Ibadan’s Gbagi area. Police then extended the operation to Agbor in Delta State, where four more children were rescued and two people were arrested. The force also said it is investigating claims that some victims may have been transferred to people linked to ritual activities, and that it received information about six children who allegedly died while in the network’s custody.

The police leadership said the case underscores efforts to protect children and dismantle trafficking rings, while investigations continue to locate more missing children and establish the full scope of the alleged crimes.