Two suspected child traffickers, Gloria Ugbebor and Vera Olunwa have been arrested by operatives of the Delta State Police Command in Asaba.
The acting Police Public Relations Officer in the state, DSP Bright Edafe, who disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday added that three children were rescued from the suspects.
Edafe said, “On Sunday, June 20, 2021, sequel to the unrelenting manhunt for child traffickers, intelligence at the command’s disposal revealed that a girl was seen roaming around a church premises in Asaba, which attracted some good Samaritans, who suspected that all was not well with her.
“The Commander, Eagle Net Special Squad, detailed operatives to the scene and the child was brought to the station.
“Preliminary investigation later revealed that she was kidnapped along with three other kids by unknown men in a car, while they were playing in their village’s surroundings in Niger State.
“The victim, Jamila Shagari, 16, also narrated that she was 12 years old when she was kidnapped and brought to one Mrs Gloria Ugbebor, 39, who is a resident of No. 15 Kingdom Hall, Umunede community in Delta State.
“The victim’s name was changed to Dorcas Peter by the said suspect before she was taken to Lagos, where she was handed over to one Azubuike. She served him as a house help for two years; after much suffering in Azubuike’s house, she returned to Mrs Gloria Ugbebor in Umunede, who later handed her over to one Mrs Vera Olunwa, 62, in Asaba.”
The acting PPRO said Ugbebor and Olunwa had been arrested, while the two other children, Nuhu Yohanna, 12, and Abednego Joshua, 11, who were in custody of Ugbebor, had also been rescued.
He said efforts were ongoing to locate the biological parents of the victims, while the command had stepped up its search for the suspects’ accomplices.