In a dramatic turn of events at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport last Wednesday, June 26, 2024, Mr. Godfrey Ayodele Iyama and his wife, Mrs. Stella Iyama, were arrested for attempting to smuggle a six-year-old child out of the country without the father’s consent, in blatant disobedience of a court order.
Child trafficking continues to pose significant challenges in Nigeria, with the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) reporting that more than half of child trafficking victims are trafficked within their own country.
According to a private investigator tracking the couple, the father of the child revealed that the child’s identification had been altered, with her name changed on her new passport. This was allegedly done to facilitate her illegal departure from Nigeria, claiming the father was deceased despite him being alive. Remarkably, the child was found to possess two valid passports under different names.
The father questioned the motive behind changing the child’s name, asking, “Why change the child’s name if Mr. Godfrey’s claims are truthful? Even if the father is dead, does that change the child’s identity?”
The child’s father credited the intervention of vigilant immigration officers and a proactive local investigator for preventing the couple from boarding a Qatar Airways flight to Birmingham International Airport with the child. The officers detained the couple and handed them over to airport security, who confirmed their involvement in child trafficking.
The father highlighted the need for improved data management systems in Nigeria, stating, “In a functional system, it should be impossible for one person to hold two different identifications. This incident exposes irregularities in our record-keeping.”
He recounted his ordeal, detailing how his wife, Shulamite, left their home with their child after admitting infidelity and facing marital disputes. Despite a court ruling granting shared custody, with strict instructions against taking the child out of Nigeria, he has been denied access to his daughter.
He further alleged that Mr. Godfrey Ayodele Iyama conspired with his wife and daughter to fraudulently obtain a new international passport for the child by altering her National Identification Number (NIN).
Efforts to contact Mr. Godfrey Ayodele Iyama for his side of the story were unsuccessful. The case is now under investigation by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP).
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