The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, has rescued 15 minors allegedly trafficked from Nasarawa State and sold to buyers across the country for N2 million each.
The children were reportedly taken from the Kama Madaki and Gudindi Mada communities in Kokona Local Government Area after a suspected member of a trafficking syndicate allegedly posed as an official of the National Council of Child Rights Advocate and persuaded vulnerable parents to surrender their children under the guise of securing free education for them.
NSCDC Public Relations Officer, Babawale Afolabi, disclosed this at a news briefing at the corps’ headquarters in Abuja on Friday, saying 15 of the 16 children involved in the case had so far been rescued.
According to Afolabi, the suspect operated an alleged non-governmental organization and orphanage initiative known as the “Back to School Project”, which he used to gain the confidence of less-privileged families.
“Under the guise of operating an NGO and orphanage programme called the Back to School Project, he lured willing, less privileged parents into releasing their children with promises of free education,” Afolabi said.
He said the children were subsequently sold to individuals in different parts of the country, with each child allegedly fetching N2 million.
The rescue operation was carried out by the Commandant General’s Special Intelligence Squad, CG’s SIS, led by Commander Dandaura Appollos.
Afolabi said intelligence gathered during the investigation enabled operatives to trace the children and their alleged buyers across several states.
“Through advanced field tracking, technical intelligence and multi-state tactical sweeps, operatives of the CG’s SIS tracked down the buyers who were from different locations in the country,” he said.
Three of the rescued children were located separately in Anambra, Imo and Enugu states, while 12 others were recovered through coordinated operations along eastern transit routes, according to the NSCDC spokesperson.
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Three suspected buyers — one man and two women — have been arrested in connection with the alleged trafficking network.
The NSCDC said investigations are continuing to establish the full extent of the network and identify other individuals who may have participated in the recruitment, transportation and sale of the children.
Afolabi said the corps maintained a zero-tolerance policy towards criminal activities, including human trafficking, and warned that those found culpable would face prosecution.
The case comes amid renewed concerns over the use of purported humanitarian and civil society initiatives to gain access to children from vulnerable families. The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Person, NAPTIP, has previously identified the recruitment of children from vulnerable families through purported orphanages and other assistance programmes as a form of trafficking.
NAPTIP’s guidance on trafficking in Nigeria also identifies the buying and selling of children as an established trafficking pattern, with victims sometimes moved from one part of the country to another for exploitation.
The development follows other recent child-trafficking investigations involving alleged criminal networks operating under the cover of civil society or child-support initiatives.
NAPTIP recently reported rescuing more than 180 children allegedly trafficked from several states by groups posing as civil society organizations and offering educational assistance to families affected by insecurity.
The NSCDC has not disclosed the identities of the rescued minors or provided details on their current condition and reunification with their families.
With one of the 16 children still unaccounted for, the corps said investigations and efforts to locate the remaining victim are ongoing.
The authorities are also expected to establish the identities of other members of the alleged syndicate and determine the circumstances surrounding the transfer of the children to their buyers.
NAN
