Police Bust Child-Trafficking Ring, Rescue Four-Year-Old Girl in Ondo

Police in Ondo State have rescued a missing four-year-old girl and uncovered a suspected child-trafficking syndicate believed to be operating across three Nigerian states.

The girl, identified as Jesinta Sunday, was reported missing on 3 February 2025 by her father, Sunday Kingsley, who lives in the Alagbaka Extension area of Akure. According to police, Jesinta disappeared while staying with her mother, Sunday Happiness.

In a statement released on Thursday in Akure, the state capital, the Police Public Relations Officer, Olusola Ayanlade, confirmed that the case was transferred to the Monitoring Unit of the State Command for a “discreet investigation.”

Investigations led to the arrest and subsequent arraignment of two women – identified as Jesinta’s mother, Sunday Happiness, and one Nneka Onah – before a Family Magistrate Court. Both were remanded at the Ondo Correctional Centre before being granted bail.

Police say the case has since expanded, revealing a wider child-trafficking network stretching from Ondo to Delta and Anambra States. Authorities have not yet disclosed the number of children affected, but security operatives have assured the public that investigations are ongoing to dismantle the syndicate and bring all suspects to justice.

The Ondo Police Command urged parents to remain vigilant, stressing that child-trafficking rings are increasingly exploiting family disputes to prey on vulnerable children.