- 26 Children Rescued, Sold for Between ₦1m and ₦3m Each
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has arrested a 60-year-old orphanage owner and founder of the National Council of Child’s Right Advocates of Nigeria (NACRAN), a civil society organization based in Benue State, over alleged large-scale child trafficking, child sale, and illegal adoption.
According to a statement released on Sunday by NAPTIP’s National Press Officer, Vincent Adekoye, operatives of the agency’s Makurdi Command rescued 26 children out of over 300 allegedly trafficked and sold to various individuals in Benue, Enugu, Lagos, Nasarawa, and Abuja. About 274 others are still being traced as investigations continue.
Also arrested were a 34-year-old female accomplice and two other orphanage operators in the Federal Capital Territory and Nasarawa State, where some of the trafficked children were recovered.
The arrest follows a renewed nationwide crackdown on orphanages and care homes ordered by NAPTIP’s Director-General, Binta Bello, in response to mounting reports of illegal activities and infractions by orphanage operators.
According to the agency, the case originated from a complaint lodged on May 1, 2025, by a man whose four-year-old son was allegedly given out to a non-governmental organization by his mother-in-law without his consent. His demand for the child’s return was rejected, prompting a formal petition to NAPTIP.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects exploited vulnerable families in crisis-hit communities of Benue State, particularly in Guma Local Government Area, under a deceptive “Back to School Project.” The initiative lured parents with promises of free education for their children, leading them to sign consent forms or give verbal approval for their wards to be taken away.
NAPTIP disclosed that the children, aged between one and thirteen years, were transported to orphanages in Abuja and Nasarawa, where they were allegedly sold to unsuspecting couples under the guise of adoption for amounts ranging from ₦1 million to ₦3 million per child. Some parents neither gave consent nor were aware of their children’s whereabouts.
The agency identified several orphanages used as holding centres pending “adoption” or sale, including facilities located at Kaigini, along Kubwa Expressway, Abuja; Masaka Area 1, Mararaba, and behind the International Market, Mararaba. These homes are now under investigation.
One complainant reportedly paid ₦2.8 million as an adoption fee and ₦100,000 as a consultancy charge to a member of the syndicate. Investigators also discovered that the identities of many rescued children had been changed to obscure their origins.
Describing the discovery as “unbelievable and mind-boggling,” NAPTIP Director-General, Binta Bello, condemned the exploitation of vulnerable communities by individuals hiding under legitimate organizations.
“It is painful that some unpatriotic elements, using their social status and recognized entities, deceive vulnerable families in crisis-prone communities to traffic and sell their children in the name of adoption,” she said.
Bello vowed that all those arrested in connection with the crime would face the full wrath of the law, warning that child trafficking and illegal adoption had become a national crisis requiring urgent collective action.
…26 Children Rescued, Sold for Between ₦1m and ₦3m Each
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has arrested a 60-year-old orphanage owner and founder of the National Council of Child’s Right Advocates of Nigeria (NACRAN), a civil society organization based in Benue State, over alleged large-scale child trafficking, child sale, and illegal adoption.
According to a statement released on Sunday by NAPTIP’s National Press Officer, Vincent Adekoye, operatives of the agency’s Makurdi Command rescued 26 children out of over 300 allegedly trafficked and sold to various individuals in Benue, Enugu, Lagos, Nasarawa, and Abuja. About 274 others are still being traced as investigations continue.
Also arrested were a 34-year-old female accomplice and two other orphanage operators in the Federal Capital Territory and Nasarawa State, where some of the trafficked children were recovered.
The arrest follows a renewed nationwide crackdown on orphanages and care homes ordered by NAPTIP’s Director-General, Binta Bello, in response to mounting reports of illegal activities and infractions by orphanage operators.
According to the agency, the case originated from a complaint lodged on May 1, 2025, by a man whose four-year-old son was allegedly given out to a non-governmental organization by his mother-in-law without his consent. His demand for the child’s return was rejected, prompting a formal petition to NAPTIP.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects exploited vulnerable families in crisis-hit communities of Benue State, particularly in Guma Local Government Area, under a deceptive “Back to School Project.” The initiative lured parents with promises of free education for their children, leading them to sign consent forms or give verbal approval for their wards to be taken away.
NAPTIP disclosed that the children, aged between one and thirteen years, were transported to orphanages in Abuja and Nasarawa, where they were allegedly sold to unsuspecting couples under the guise of adoption for amounts ranging from ₦1 million to ₦3 million per child. Some parents neither gave consent nor were aware of their children’s whereabouts.
The agency identified several orphanages used as holding centres pending “adoption” or sale, including facilities located at Kaigini, along Kubwa Expressway, Abuja; Masaka Area 1, Mararaba, and behind the International Market, Mararaba. These homes are now under investigation.
One complainant reportedly paid ₦2.8 million as an adoption fee and ₦100,000 as a consultancy charge to a member of the syndicate. Investigators also discovered that the identities of many rescued children had been changed to obscure their origins.
Describing the discovery as “unbelievable and mind-boggling,” NAPTIP Director-General, Binta Bello, condemned the exploitation of vulnerable communities by individuals hiding under legitimate organizations.
“It is painful that some unpatriotic elements, using their social status and recognized entities, deceive vulnerable families in crisis-prone communities to traffic and sell their children in the name of adoption,” she said.
Bello vowed that all those arrested in connection with the crime would face the full wrath of the law, warning that child trafficking and illegal adoption had become a national crisis requiring urgent collective action.
