From Festivals To Agbor: How Police Cracked Oyo Child-Trafficking Network
By TINA TOLUTOPE
The Petition That Exposed a Bigger Crime
A complaint over alleged conspiracy, cyberbullying, threats to life and defamation has opened a disturbing investigation into an alleged child-stealing and trafficking network operating across several Nigerian states.
The investigation began on 29 July 2026, when Adejoke Popoola, popularly known as “Orente Alagbo”, approached the Oyo State Police Command with the complaint.
Three weeks later, investigators linked her to the disappearance of a three-year-old boy and uncovered what police described as a wider interstate network.
By 2nd September, the Anti-Kidnapping Squad had rescued 17 underage children and arrested several suspects in Oyo, Ogun and Delta states.
The investigation also produced allegations that some children died while in the custody of members of the network and that their remains were sold for ritual purposes.
The Missing Three-Year-Old
The case took investigators back to 29 June, when three-year-old Ifakunle Ifagbenro disappeared during an annual masquerade festival in Oyo Town.
According to Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Abimbola Ayodeji Olugbenga, the boy had attended the festival with his father at his maternal grandfather’s compound.
Popoola had reportedly arrived in the area two days earlier to assist with preparations for the event.
Photographs and video footage from the festival later became crucial to the investigation. They reportedly showed Popoola carrying the child.
Police said both Popoola and Ifakunle subsequently disappeared from the venue.
The child’s disappearance was reported at Atiba Police Divisional Headquarters in Oyo Town.
Detectives then began examining the available digital evidence and questioning people captured in the event footage.
On 4 August, investigators arrested Popoola at about 2:30 p.m.
A Suspect Leads Police to Her Associates
Police said Popoola admitted taking the child and told investigators that she had been involved in child stealing for more than a decade.
According to the police account, she specialised in attending churches, mosques, traditional festivals and social gatherings, including owambe parties, where she allegedly identified and stole unsuspecting children.
The alleged victims ranged from infants to young children.
Police said Popoola also identified Adekanbi Janet, popularly known as Hosanna, as an associate.
That information took investigators to Mowe in Ogun State.
There, they reportedly rescued four children aged between two and four.
Two pregnant young women were also found in Janet’s custody.
Police said Janet acknowledged knowing Popoola for about 10 years and admitted involvement in stealing and selling children, although she denied having Ifakunle in her custody.
The Mowe Connection
The investigation began to reveal a more complex pattern.
According to the police, stolen children were allegedly kept temporarily while suspects searched for buyers.
Investigators also alleged that pregnant young women were held until they gave birth, after which their babies were allegedly taken away for sale.
These claims form part of the police investigation and would still require determination through the legal process.
Meanwhile, the search for Ifakunle continued.
Police eventually rescued the boy around the Gbagi area of Ibadan on 20 August.
His recovery gave investigators another important breakthrough in the wider case.
The Trail Moves to Delta
The investigation did not end in Oyo and Ogun.
On 2nd September, detectives travelled to Agbor in Delta State, following information allegedly obtained during their interrogation of suspects.
According to the police, investigators rescued four more children who had allegedly been stolen from Oyo State.
They also arrested two alleged buyers, identified as 48-year-old Christopher Joy and 53-year-old Rosemary Jesse.
The police commissioner said both suspects confessed to involvement in the network.
The interstate dimension of the case raised questions about how children could allegedly be moved between states and kept away from their families while prospective buyers were found.
The Ritual Allegations
The most disturbing part of the investigation concerns the alleged deaths of children while in captivity.
Police said some children died while in the custody of the suspected network.
Investigators further alleged that the remains of some of the deceased children were sold to people seeking human body parts for ritual purposes.
The allegations led to the arrest of Muritala Fasasi, described by police as an Islamic cleric, and Yakubu Azeez, an herbalist.
According to the police commissioner, both suspects allegedly confessed to using human remains for ritual purposes.
The claims remain allegations and will have to be tested in court.
The Children at the Centre of the Investigation
Police identified 17 rescued children in the investigation.
They included Ifakunle Ifagbenro, 3; Musibau Olasupo, 5; Sulaimon Osamo, 7; Murina Fidaus, 3; Aminat Yusuf, 3; Taiwo Olamilekan, 3; a nine-day-old male infant; Rafiat Waheed Babalola, 2; Quwiyat Alade, 5; Rejoice Divine, 3; Alhaji Divine, 5; Eniolorunda, 3; Victoria, 3; Isoma Prince, 3; Roqeeba, 4; Boluwatife Odedeyi, 3; and Ireoluwa Elizabeth Olapade, 7.
Police also named six children who they said died while in custody.
They were Musharaf Lawal Tajudeen, 2; Greatness Adeagbo, 5; Sainat Amoo, 2; Taiwo Usman, 2; Daniel Solomon Olayinka, 7; and Miracle Olaniyi, 4.
Their deaths add a particularly grave dimension to the investigation.
A Network That Crossed State Boundaries
What began as the disappearance of one child developed into an investigation spanning Oyo, Ogun and Delta states.
The case also illustrates how child trafficking networks can exploit crowded social and cultural gatherings, according to the police account.
The alleged use of festivals, religious gatherings and social events as hunting grounds raises serious questions about parental vigilance and child protection at public events.
It also highlights the need for stronger cooperation between police commands across state boundaries.
Beyond the Arrests
The investigation now faces a larger test than simply securing arrests.
Authorities must establish what happened to each rescued child, locate their families and provide appropriate protection and psychological support.
They must also determine the fate of children who remain missing and establish the individual roles of every suspect.
Most importantly, allegations surrounding the deaths and alleged sale of human remains require credible forensic investigation.
The case is therefore not only about a suspected child-stealing ring. It is also a test of Nigeria’s ability to investigate organised child trafficking, protect vulnerable children and bring those responsible for proven crimes to justice.
