By Ayomide Otitoju
The Oyo State Police Command has confirmed the deaths of six children allegedly abducted by a suspected child-stealing and human trafficking syndicate.
The command also announced the rescue of 17 children and the arrest of seven suspects following an intelligence-led investigation into a criminal network allegedly involved in the stealing, trafficking and concealment of children across state lines.
The Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Olugbenga, disclosed this on Monday at a press briefing at the Police State Headquarters, Eleyele, Ibadan.
Olugbenga said the investigation began with a petition dated July 29, 2026, filed by Adejoke Popoola, also known as Orente Alagbo, of Sogade Area, Ariyo, Ibadan, over allegations of conspiracy, cyberbullying, threat to life and defamation of character.
He said while detectives were investigating the petition, they were alerted to the disappearance of three-year-old Ifakunle Ifagbenro during an annual masquerade festival in Oyo Town on June 29.
According to the commissioner, Ifakunle had accompanied his father to his father-in-law’s family compound for the festival, while Popoola arrived two days earlier to participate in preparations for the event.
Olugbenga said Popoola offered to carry the child during the festival, after which both of them disappeared from the venue.
The incident was reported at the Atiba Police Divisional Headquarters in Oyo Town.
The police chief said photographs and videos from the event showed Popoola carrying the missing child, while digital trails and statements from people connected to the event further established that she was with the child around the time of his disappearance.
Popoola was arrested on August 4 and allegedly admitted attending the festival and leaving with the child.
Olugbenga said her statement provided the first major breakthrough in the investigation, leading detectives to uncover what they described as a wider criminal network.
The suspect allegedly admitted involvement in the stealing of more than 15 children, aged between two and seven years, from churches, parties and other event venues within and outside Oyo State.
She reportedly identified Adekanbi Janet, also known as Hosanna, as her alleged partner in the operation.
Adekanbi was subsequently traced to Mowe, Ogun State, where police rescued four children aged between two and four years and recovered two pregnant young women.
According to Olugbenga, Adekanbi admitted knowing Popoola for about 10 years in connection with the alleged stealing and sale of children, although she denied having Ifakunle in her custody.
The commissioner said Adekanbi disclosed that some stolen children were kept in custody pending their sale, while the pregnant women were allegedly cared for until they gave birth.
Information obtained from her later led detectives to Ifakunle, who was rescued around the Gbagi area of Ibadan on August 20.
The investigation subsequently expanded beyond Oyo State.
Olugbenga said detectives travelled to Agbor, Delta State, on September 2, where they rescued four children allegedly stolen from Oyo State from suspected buyers.
Two suspects, 48-year-old Christopher Joy and 53-year-old Rosemary Jesse, were arrested and allegedly confessed to involvement in the operation.
The commissioner said the development confirmed the interstate nature of the alleged criminal network and showed that children were being moved outside Oyo State.
The investigation also uncovered an alleged ritual dimension to the syndicate’s activities.
According to Olugbenga, one suspect confessed that whenever a child died in their custody, the body was allegedly sold to ritualists.
The disclosure reportedly led to the arrest of Muritala Fasasi, an Alfa, and Yakubu Azeez, a herbalist, who police said confessed to allegedly using the bodies for ritual purposes.
The investigation was further linked to a testimony attributed to one of the principal suspects, who allegedly told detectives that she had stolen 13 children before her arrest.
The suspect, known as Orente, reportedly said she visited homes and took children whenever she found no one around.
She allegedly told investigators that the children were sold for between N500,000 and N600,000 and claimed she had been involved in the business since October 2024.
She also reportedly explained how children could be taken from locations where traditional or spiritual activities were being held, including masquerade festivals, by gaining the confidence of their parents.
In one account, she allegedly told investigators that she would approach parents of children with disabilities and claim she could cure them before taking the children away.
The six children confirmed dead were identified as Musharaf Lawal Tajudeen, two; Greatness Adeagbo, five; Sainat Amoo, two; Taiwo Usman, two; Daniel Solomon Olayinka, seven; and Miracle Olaniyi, four.
The 17 rescued children were identified as Ifakunle Ifagbenro, three; Musibau Olasupo, five; Sulaimon Osamo, seven; Murina Fidaus, three; Aminat Yusuf, three; Taiwo Olamilekan, three; an infant male aged nine days; Rafiat Waheed Babalola, two; Quwiyat Alade, five; Rejoice Divine, three; Alhaji Divine, five; Eniolorunda, three; Victoria, three; Isoma Prince, three; Roqeeba, four; Boluwatife Odedeyi, three; and Ireoluwa Elizabeth Olapade, seven.
The commissioner appealed to parents and guardians who have lost children in recent times to visit the Police Command Headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan, to identify the rescued children and facilitate their reunification with their families.
He said the command was working with other security and government agencies to uncover the full structure of the alleged network, locate other missing children, determine the circumstances surrounding the reported deaths and ensure that anyone found culpable was prosecuted.
Olugbenga urged members of the public to remain vigilant and report missing children to the police without delay.
He particularly advised parents and guardians to exercise caution when dealing with people who present themselves as traditional or spiritual healers, especially those who seek to separate children from their families or take them to undisclosed locations.
The commissioner also appealed for credible information that could assist the investigation, assuring members of the public that such information would be handled professionally and, where necessary, confidentially.
He reaffirmed the command’s commitment to protecting children and other vulnerable persons, dismantling criminal networks and ensuring that justice is served in accordance with the law.
