Oyo Police: Adejoke Popoola Confesses To Child Trafficking, Selling Own Kids

• Adejoke Popoola confessed to selling her own two sets of children and stealing 19 others, beginning in October 2024.
• She employed deceptive methods, including posing as a spiritualist and abducting a three-year-old during an Egungun festival in Oyo Town.
• Six of the 19 children Popoola allegedly kidnapped have died, with 13 currently alive.
• The Oyo State Police Command rescued 17 children and arrested seven suspects linked to the child stealing syndicate.
• A clinic in Ogeere was implicated in purchasing twins for N300,000 and operating a 'baby industry' for resale to customers in Lagos.

Adejoke Popoola's detailed confession to law enforcement officials in Ibadan revealed a chilling network of child trafficking, including the sale of her own offspring and the abduction of numerous other children.

Adejoke Popoola, a woman implicated in a widespread child-stealing and trafficking operation, recently provided a detailed confession to journalists at the Oyo State Police Command headquarters in Ibadan. Popoola admitted to her involvement in these illicit activities since October 2024, revealing a disturbing pattern of selling her own biological children alongside the abduction of others for profit. Her admissions shed light on the dark underbelly of human trafficking in the region.

Among her own offspring, Popoola confessed to selling a newborn boy and a set of twins. The twins, she stated, were sold to a clinic located in Ogeere for a sum of N300,000. Beyond her own children, she claimed responsibility for kidnapping 19 other children, a grim tally from which six have reportedly died, leaving 13 survivors. Popoola, who also sells herbs at Ariyo Bus Stop, Olunloyo, is a mother of seven, with her youngest child being six years old and her eldest 34.

Popoola's confession detailed various deceptive methods employed to acquire children. She described posing as a prospective tenant, using the guise of seeking a house to rent, and then abducting children when their parents were not present. Another chilling tactic involved impersonating a spiritualist, targeting vulnerable parents of children with disabilities. She would promise healing for their non-verbal, non-sitting, or non-walking children, only to replace them with other children she had acquired.

One particularly harrowing account involved the abduction of three-year-old Ifakunle Ifagbenro during an Egungun festival in Oyo Town. Popoola recounted joining a prayer session, offering money, and then volunteering to hold the boy during the procession. As evening fell, she allegedly carried the child on her back and fled. She also claimed that a woman she worked with at Ogeere Market taught her how to steal children, further highlighting the organized nature of the syndicate. The clinic in Ogeere, which purchased her twins, was described by Popoola as a 'baby industry' that resold children to customers in Lagos, with individual children fetching between N80,000 and N120,000.

The Oyo State Police Command's proactive efforts led to the uncovering of this suspected child-stealing and trafficking syndicate, resulting in the rescue of 17 children and the arrest of seven suspects. Commissioner of Police Abimbola Olugbenga confirmed these developments during a press briefing held at the command headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan, on the same Monday Popoola made her confession.

The breakthrough stemmed from an intelligence-led investigation, initially prompted by a petition, which subsequently exposed a far-reaching criminal network. This syndicate was allegedly involved in the stealing, movement, sale, and concealment of children across states, alongside other reported criminal activities. The swift action by the human trafficking Oyo State police underscores the ongoing commitment to dismantle such illicit operations and protect vulnerable children.

This case underscores the active enforcement against child trafficking in Oyo State and reveals the deceptive tactics employed by syndicates, including the involvement of healthcare facilities. Lawyers should advise clients on enhanced vigilance and compliance measures to prevent complicity in or exposure to such illicit activities, particularly within child welfare or healthcare sectors.

Source: Original reporting via PUNCH Online