Anambra Police Arrest 63-Year-Old Suspected Kingpin of Inter-State Child Trafficking Syndicate
Operatives of the Oba Division of the Anambra State Police Command have arrested a 63-year-old woman, identified as Ngozi Muotuanya of Awkuzu-Oba, suspected to be a key player in an inter-state child-trafficking ring, the Command said on Tuesday.
Police spokesman SP Tochukwu Ikenga told reporters in statement that the arrest was made on 11 August, followed credible intelligence linking Muotuanya to the disappearance and sale of a male toddler in Minna, Niger State in 2024.
According to preliminary investigations, the child was first sold to an unsuspecting member of the public in Anambra and subsequently resold.
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SP Ikenga said events came to light on 4 August 2025 when the receiver — who later realised the child was stolen — returned the boy to the principal suspect. The suspect allegedly abandoned the toddler at an unascertained church in Minna, where the child was later rescued by the leader of the Igbo community in that city.
“The Command has relayed details of the child’s custodian in Minna to the Niger State Police Command for possible recovery and reunification with his parents,” SP Ikenga said. He added that Muotuanya will be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Awka, for discreet investigation and subsequent prosecution.
The Anambra State Police Command said it will continue its probe to identify and apprehend other members of the trafficking network.
By PRNigeria
