Police arrest three ‘human traffickers’, rescue 12 children in Abuja

The federal capital territory (FCT) police command says 12 children have been rescued while being trafficked to Ogun state.  

In a statement on Saturday, Josephine Adeh, FCT police spokesperson, said the operatives arrested three suspects, including one Pastor Simon Kado.

Adeh said the trafficked children were underaged, adding that they are indigenes of Nasarawa state.

“The operatives of FCT police command attached to the Rapid Response Squad 74 (RRS 74), on Friday 09/02/2024 at about 12:5 5 am,  intercepted one Muhammad Isah ‘m’ of Kafanchan, Kaduna in a Toyota Hiace bus with Reg No APP 489 XE, conveying twelve, four (4) male and eight (8) female; underaged children to a destination later discovered to be in Ogun state,” the statement reads.

“Preliminary investigation revealed that the children whose ages are between 5 years to 16 years, all from Akwanga LGA, Nasarawa state were being trafficked to Ogun state by one Pastor Simon Kado ‘m’ and Jesse Simon Kado ‘m’, who are now presently in police custody.

“While investigation is still ongoing and effort in conduit with Nasarawa state police command on how to reunite victims with their respective families, the commissioner of police FCT, CP Benneth C. Igweh psc, mni, wishes to reiterate that the safety of residents remains his utmost priority.”

The police spokesperson urged resident to report any suspicious activities to the security agencies.