Child Stolen At Seven days Old, Rescued Seven Years Later

BY Suleiman Anyalewechi

The Kaduna State Police Command, on Saturday, April 12, 2025, announced the rescue of no fewer than 13 trafficked children from their captors.

At a Media Briefing, the State Commissioner for Humanitarian Services and and Social Development, Rabi Salisu,  informed that the children were sold by a  trafficking syndicate in Enugu and other parts of the South East region.

According to the Commissioner, the victims were first taken to Abuja from where they were sold to buyers from  Enugu and other States   by the group.

Instructively, one of the rescued children, now aged seven years, was stolen from his parents just seven days after birth.

The State Government has vowed to do everything humanly possible to reunite the seven-year old with his parents after these years of forced separation .

According to Hajia Salisu, all the trafficked children have had their names changed by those who bought them .

” One of the abducted children was stolen when he was seven days old, and he is now 7 years old and cannot identify his roots.

“But the authorities will do everything humanly possible to ensure that he is reunited with his family members.

“All of the children have their names changed from Hausa to other names .Those brought to Kaduna are under special intervention and emergency support of the Government under the Ministry’s facility to provide Psychosocial counseling and support, nutritional food, medical care and rehabilitation”,  the Commissioner stated.

She noted that  11 of the rescued children were received from the office of the Commissioner of Police Federal Capital Territory on March 24, 2025.

Salisu revealed that arrested members of the trafficking syndicate informed that the head of the group, a woman operates an orphanage home in Abuja through which she acquires and disposes of children to different locations in the South East.

“The woman uses her orphanage shelter for the stolen children and, thereafter, negotiates for their sale to prospective buyers in the South-east part of the country.

“This evil act is so alarming that all the children found and brought back have lost their original identities so much that they can’t remember their original homes.

“Seven of the children were received on 9th April 2025 from the State Commissioner of Police’s  office. The remaining children from Abuja, and six others brought back from Birnin -Kebbi, who were abducted and sold to a woman nicknamed Maman Salamatu in Calabar (real name withheld as this case is still under investigation in Kebbi state).

“These children are in our custody and also under our special care and emergency intervention.To this effect, we are calling on parents who lost their children and are searching for them to come forward with concrete evidence, proof of birth, and other relevant information, to  be reunited with their child ( ren) and or wards immediately after this press conference”, Salisu stated.