Oyo Police Rescue Baby Girl Sold For N2m, Arrest Mother, Health Facility Owner
The Oyo State Police Command has rescued a one-month-old baby girl allegedly sold for N2 million and arrested two suspects, including the child’s mother and the owner of the health facility where she was delivered. The…
Child trafficking disguised as "baby factory" arrangements or informal adoptions remains a persistent problem in southwestern Nigeria, with Oyo, Lagos and Anambra states among those where such cases are frequently uncovered. Perpetrators often exploit poverty, unwanted pregnancies and weak oversight of private clinics and maternity homes to broker the sale of infants, with proprietors of unlicensed health facilities sometimes complicit in concealing births or falsifying documentation. Nigeria's Child Rights Act and the Trafficking in Persons (Prohibition) Enforcement Act criminalise such sales, but enforcement gaps and the involvement of trusted intermediaries, including family members, continue to make detection difficult.
Both Leadership and Vanguard report the same core facts: a one-month-old girl was allegedly sold by her mother for N2 million, the police rescued the child, and two suspects — the mother and the health facility owner — were arrested. Vanguard adds the name of the alleged buyer, Folawewo, and specifies Ido Local Government Area of Ibadan as the location. Neither report yet details the charges to be filed, the baby's current custody arrangement, or whether additional suspects, such as intermediaries who facilitated the transaction, are being sought.