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…criminals using NGOs to steal, sell children
From Fred Ezeh, Abuja
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has rescued more than 180 children allegedly trafficked from five states across Nigeria by suspected criminal syndicates operating under the guise of civil society organisations.
The development, the agency said, followed the activities of suspected trafficking syndicates who allegedly move from one crisis-ridden community to another, offering educational support and back-to-school programmes as a means of gaining the confidence of vulnerable families before taking away their children.
The operation also led to the arrest of a nurse at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Onitsha, Anambra State, who was allegedly found in possession of one of the trafficked children.
NAPTIP, in a statement signed by Vincent Adekoye, Head, Press and Public Relations Unit of the Agency, indicated that the recent rescue operation involved three children allegedly trafficked from a distressed parent in Kajuru, Kaduna State, and recovered from a high-rise private building in a choice area of Onitsha, Anambra State.
The statement further indicated that another child was also recovered from the care of a clinical staff member at the Federal Medical Centre, Onitsha.
It recalled that the Director General of NAPTIP, Binta Bello, had established a Special Squad within the Investigation and Monitoring Department to investigate reported cases of missing children, rescue trafficked children and ensure that those behind the crimes are brought to justice.
It stated that the first batch of rescued children comprised youngsters allegedly taken from communities in Benue and Nasarawa states.
NAPTIP said some of the children were subsequently distributed to orphanages in Abuja and other states, where they were allegedly sold to unidentified individuals under the guise of adoption after substantial sums of money had been paid.
Father of one of the rescued children, whose name was withheld, said his family was displaced three years ago when gunmen invaded his community in Kajuru.
“Afterwards, some individuals who claimed to be running an NGO approached some displaced families and offered to take their children to the city for proper education. The parents agreed, believing that the arrangement would secure a better future for their children, but later discovered that they had been deceived,” he said.
The father said his son was three years old when he was taken away and is now six.
He expressed mixed feelings after the child was recovered, saying he was happy to see him alive but saddened by his condition, as the boy appeared unkempt, unhappy and possibly had been used as a house help.
He said he eventually discovered that his son had been rescued after seeing the child’s photograph on NAPTIP’s Facebook page and contacting the Agency.
Meanwhile, the nurse arrested at FMC Onitsha confessed that she obtained the child from a prominent orphanage in Abuja, whose name was withheld, in 2023 after paying N771,000.
Reacting to the development, the NAPTIP Director-General expressed concern over the alleged involvement of individuals masquerading as members of civil society organisations in child trafficking.
She called on the umbrella body of civil society organisations in Nigeria, particularly groups working in the humanitarian and counter-trafficking space, to carry out an internal cleansing and expose suspected criminal elements within their ranks.
The NAPTIP boss said the Agency had confidence in the commitment of genuine civil society organisations working to protect vulnerable people, but warned that some criminal elements appeared to have infiltrated the sector.
She said investigations had shown that the suspected criminals allegedly use the platforms and names of prominent civil society organisations to lure parents in security-challenged communities with promises of educational support.
According to her, the children were subsequently taken away and allegedly sold to the highest bidders. “This is criminal, and it is a direct way of adding more sorrow to already traumatised families,” Bello said.
She challenged the umbrella body of civil society organisations to carry out in-house cleansing and expose those suspected to be criminal elements among them, insisting that such individuals must be flushed out.
Bello further disclosed that NAPTIP had commenced a manhunt for persons mentioned in its investigations, assuring that the Agency would ensure that those found culpable face the full wrath of the law.
