By Joycelyn Ellakeche Adah
Promises of orphanage care and payments of up to N1.5 million have emerged in an alleged child trafficking operation under investigation in Abuja, with some suspects claiming they met the woman who recruited them at Dunamis Church in Lugbe.
The Federal Capital Territory Police Command disclosed the latest developments on Tuesday while parading suspects linked to alleged child abduction and trafficking. Police said an expanded investigation led to two additional arrests and the recovery of a five-year-old girl.
The suspects’ claims about meeting at the church have not been independently verified. Police presented no evidence at the briefing establishing that Dunamis Church, as an institution, participated in the alleged crimes.
Some of the women identified their alleged recruiter as “Madame Nkechi,” claiming she offered to place vulnerable children in an orphanage and compensate those who brought them.
One suspect, Rose David, 47, alleged that Nkechi instructed her to bring children found wandering on the streets, claiming she had government approval to provide shelter and education.
“She said that she was helping, that government had approved it, that only children roaming around the street that don’t have help could be brought to her,” David told journalists.
David said she took one child to the woman and was subsequently arrested. According to her, the child was recovered immediately, and she was taken to court before later being allowed to go home.
She also alleged that those bringing children could receive N1.5 million to share, with individual payments determined by the arrangement.
Another suspect, Usman Blessing, from Benue State, described a similar promise of orphanage care and financial compensation. She acknowledged an earlier case involving a child but denied knowing anything about the five-year-old girl recovered in the latest investigation.
Police said two of the women had previously been arrested, prosecuted and sentenced to prison in 2024, spending about four months in custody before their release. Some suspects gave differing accounts of their earlier court proceedings and detention.
A third suspect, identified as Joy, from Kogi State, denied involvement in the latest case or in taking the child to Onitsha. She, however, acknowledged receiving N370,000 in connection with an earlier incident involving Nkechi.
“I didn’t know when she took the child and I don’t have any business with her,” Joy said.
Rose Michael, also from Kogi State, told journalists that she worked as a cleaner for Nkechi and was instructed to deliver a baby to a woman in Lagos.
Michael claimed she believed the child was an orphan. She alleged that she made more than one trip to deliver children to people whose identities and contact details were communicated to her by telephone.
She also alleged that another woman she knew through the church participated in one arrangement, and that she received N200,000 for her return journey after delivering a child.
The command said investigators were working to establish the recovered girl’s identity and locate her biological parents.
Anyone claiming parentage would undergo verification, including DNA testing, before the child could be released, police said.
Police Announce Arrests in Separate Robbery Cases
At the same briefing, the command announced arrests in three separate investigations involving armed robbery and “one-chance” operations.
In one case, Jamilu Abdul Salah and Ibrahim Isa were arrested along the AYA–Nyanya Expressway in late September following intelligence about a suspected robbery syndicate operating across Abuja and parts of Nasarawa, Niger and Kogi states.
Police alleged that the group monitored victims’ movements before attacking them at gunpoint. The two suspects were reportedly intercepted after a robbery while attempting to leave the FCT for a hideout in Nasarawa State.
Recovered items included three locally made pistols, three live cartridges, four knives, 17 mobile phones, two cutlasses and a PlayStation console, according to the command.
In another case, a suspect was arrested following an October 18 complaint at Jabi Police Station. Police alleged that he threatened a woman returning from work with a knife and stole her handbag, which contained an iPhone and other valuables.
The suspect allegedly used her phone and ATM card to withdraw money from her account. A search of his residence reportedly yielded a bag, a knife, a sharp iron, a black face mask, a power bank and a purse.
The command also announced the arrest of eight suspects following an alleged one-chance robbery involving the wife of a police officer.
The woman reportedly boarded a taxi on August 7 and was robbed of her phone and valuables before money was transferred from her account.
Police said digital investigations and transaction tracing led to the arrests and recovery of 21 mobile phones and three laptops, including the victim’s device.
One suspect allegedly specialised in changing the International Mobile Equipment Identity numbers of stolen phones to obstruct tracking before resale.
The command urged residents whose phones or laptops had been stolen to present proof of ownership to help identify and reclaim recovered devices.
It said suspects would be charged upon completion of investigations and encouraged residents to report crimes promptly to police stations or through official emergency lines.
“When you see something, you say something. If you say something, we will do something,” the command said, assuring informants of confidentiality.
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