Kano Police Arrest 9 For Selling, Buying Children

By Abdullahi Yusuf

The Kano State Police Command has arrested nine suspects who specialise in interstate trafficking, abduction, buying and selling of children.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Usaini Gumel, disclosed this while presenting the suspects to newsmen at the command’s headquarters in Bompai, Kano, on Thursday.

Gumel said the suspects were apprehended after several intelligence-led operations through which the long-time cycle of interstate trafficking syndicates hibernating around Kano, Bauchi, Gombe, Lagos, Delta, Anambra and Imo states were identified and dismantled.

According to him, seven victims, who are mostly minors, were rescued from the suspects.

“It was through diligent investigations by our dedicated team of officers that the operations of these criminal networks that have been in existence for more than 10 years were identified,” he said.

The commissioner disclosed that some of the rescued children aged between three and eight were sold at between N300,000 and N600,000, depending on their ages.

“It was discovered during investigations that a victim, Mohammed Ilya, who was abducted from Bauchi but his name changed to Chidebere, was sold recently at Nnewi in Anambra State,” he said.

He said the command would collaborate with the state government to ensure that all the abducted children were safely returned and reunited with their original families.

The commissioner assured members of the public that the command under his watch had put in place security measures to end the menace once and for all.