Twins Missing, Babies Stolen: Delta’s Child Abduction Saga

In Delta State, a story of unimaginable grief, desperation, and criminal intent has left families shattered and a community deeply shaken. What began as a private tragedy within one home spiraled into a disturbing case of child abduction, sparking outrage, sorrow, and urgent questions about child protection across Nigeria. FELIX IGBEKOYI chronicles the saga that shook the state.

Globally, children are regarded as sacred gifts, innocent lives to be nurtured and protected. Under Article 19 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, governments are obliged to protect children from violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect. Yet in Delta State, that protection was brutally tested in a case that defied comprehension.

Only recently, the Delta State Police command uncovered a deeply unsettling incident involving a woman who allegedly abducted two infants after losing her own newborn twins. According to investigators, her motive was not financial gain, but a chilling attempt to conceal personal tragedy ahead of a planned child dedication ceremony.

For the biological parents of the stolen children, life had already been defined by daily struggle, working tirelessly to provide for their families. But that fragile balance was destroyed in an instant when their babies vanished.

What followed was not just a search; it was anguish stretched across days, weeks, and sleepless nights.

One of the grieving mothers, who preferred anonymity, as her family is already demoralised, her voice heavy with exhaustion and pain, described the torment of living each day without her child. She said the pain was relentless, a constant cycle of hope and disappointment, as she searched endlessly with no answers.

She said each passing day deepened her despair.

At her lowest point, she admitted she felt abandoned by fate itself, forced to endure a suffering no parent should ever experience.

The second victim, who also pleaded for privacy, shared a similar story of emotional collapse, describing how sorrow overtook her household. She and her husband watched helplessly as hope gradually faded, despite exhausting every possible avenue to find their child.

LEADERSHIP Sunday writes that although money was spent and efforts multiplied, vigils were kept. Yet nothing seemed to bring relief.

“There is no time I will be alone without thinking of my baby one of the demoralised mothers said.  There is nothing I have not done to search for my baby. I go to different churches and sow seeds. I shed tears every day. The gruelling heartaches persisted for days,” she said, her voice breaking under the weight of memory.

After the suspect was paraded by the police, one of the mothers expressed gratitude to the Delta State Police Command, saying that upon seeing their children again, they immediately recognised them.

The first mother said, “I give thanks to God. I recognised my child immediately I set my eyes on the baby,” she said, overwhelmed with relief.

The Delta State police command had, in May 2026, intensified operations against child trafficking and related crimes, leading to multiple rescues and arrests across Warri and Effurun.

In one operation, officers of the Quick Response Squad (QRS), Warri, rescued a two-year-old child suspected of being abducted and prevented a mob from lynching the suspect at Igbudu Market.

The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Fejiro Obaduemu of Idesor Street, Isi Layout, Warri, was intercepted after being found with a child concealed inside a sack bag, raising immediate suspicion.

Police intervention not only saved the child but also protected the suspect from being mobbed by angry residents. He was later taken to a medical facility after sustaining injuries during the incident.

Subsequent investigations resulted in the child’s reunion with their parents in the presence of community leaders.

Preliminary findings revealed that the suspect allegedly confessed that he had been instructed by an unidentified individual to carry out the abduction.

Delta State Police commissioner, CP Yemi Oyeniyi, reiterated the command’s commitment to protecting children and combating human trafficking, while urging parents and guardians to be more vigilant.

He emphasised the importance of community awareness, noting that many abductions occur because of lapses in supervision and weak security in public spaces such as schools, markets, mosques, and churches.

He also warned that no child should be left in the care of strangers, emphasising that trust must never take precedence over caution.

“Parents must show children love, teach them not to trust just anyone, and remain vigilant at all times,” he said.

To avert child abduction, we need to be vigilant guardians of our children. Parents must show them love. We should teach them not to trust just anyone, because those they trust are the ones who betray them. We should also teach them to be content so that no one will be able to lure them.

In another development, police rescued a three-year-old abducted girl and arrested a suspect, Kelvin Ogaga, in connection with the crime in Ughelli.

The suspect allegedly kidnapped the child during what was meant to be a routine school drop-off, and later demanded a ransom of N500,000 from the family.

Following negotiations, the ransom was paid, but police operatives, acting on intelligence, stormed his hideout, arrested him, and recovered part of the ransom and valuables purchased with the proceeds.

Further investigations revealed that the Delta State Police Command had been tracking multiple kidnapping networks, resulting in a series of breakthroughs, including the arrest of the woman allegedly responsible for abducting two infants.

During interrogation, the suspect, identified only as Joy, confessed to the crime, saying she had lost her twin babies shortly after birth and could not bear the shame of presenting an empty home for a scheduled dedication ceremony.

“I got pregnant and had twin children. When they were one month and two weeks old, I left them at home while I went to the market. Before I came back, they had used cold water to bathe the twins, and they both died,” she said.

She explained that pressure from her family and preparations for the dedication pushed her to abduct other children to replace her loss.

“I stole the first baby three weeks ago and later stole the other on Saturday because the dedication was on Sunday,” she confessed.

One of the rescued parents described the moment of reunion as overwhelming, saying that joy returned in a flood, washing away weeks of despair.

“I shed tears of joy… it was too good to be true. The fear and the pain disappeared the moment I saw my child again,” she said.

Delta State Police public relations officer SP Bright Edafe, speaking in a video shared online, expressed shock at the circumstances surrounding the case.

He described how the suspect allegedly exploited moments of distraction to abduct infants, sometimes posing as a customer or a helper.

He warned parents against leaving children in the care of strangers, stressing that many of the victims were taken within seconds of negligence.

According to him, the suspect had previously stolen another child before the latest abductions, revealing a disturbing pattern of repeated offences.

He questioned how easily children were handed over to strangers, describing it as a dangerous vulnerability that criminals exploit.

Civil societies react

The Neo-Black Movement (NBM) of Africa Worldwide called for urgent national and international action to strengthen child protection systems and secure the return of missing children and teachers.

The coordinator of the Body of Founders, Akpo Bodunrin Diejomaoh, urged government institutions, security agencies, civil society organisations, traditional rulers, faith-based groups and international partners to strengthen collaboration in protecting children from insecurity, trafficking, exploitation and abuse.

Diejomaoh described the campaign as a humanitarian initiative driven by compassion and collective responsibility rather than politics, stressing that every child deserves protection, dignity and hope.

It also called for symbolic public actions of solidarity with victims, emphasising that protecting children is a shared moral duty.

On his part, a psychologist, Elder Patrick Ochei, disclosed that the tales of agony were not different and that incidents of missing or abducted children have turned a number of parents into victims of mental torment, especially when the whereabouts of such children are perpetually shrouded in secrecy.

While capturing the unending anguish of parents of missing children, they said, “It is a very traumatic experience, and the effect hardly subsides. It can affect them to the point that they may be walking on the road, oblivious to other road users and cars. They feel that somebody should turn to the child. It is a very nasty experience. It is more serious than when the child is dead.”

A victim, Deborah Ijeh, lamented that children remain the foundation of society, yet continue to face grave insecurity, especially in learning environments.

She called for greater investment in school safety, community vigilance, and nationwide child-protection frameworks.

Security experts also stressed the importance of parental responsibility alongside institutional accountability, noting that administrators of public spaces such as schools and churches must ensure proper safeguards.

The Delta State Police command reaffirmed that investigations are ongoing to dismantle wider child trafficking networks and bring all accomplices to justice.

For the parents, however, the pain lingers in their memories.

LEADERSHIP Sunday observed that even in moments of relief, the trauma of loss and uncertainty remained deeply embedded, especially for those who lived through the unbearable days of not knowing whether their children were alive or gone forever.

A psychologist, Elder Patrick Ochei, explained that the trauma of missing children often leaves emotional scars deeper than bereavement itself, because of the uncertainty involved.

He noted that parents often suffer prolonged psychological distress, while recovered children may also struggle with trust, fear, and emotional withdrawal.

When contacted to react to the issue, former Police commissioner, Ayo Aduba (rtd), linked rising cases of child abduction to parental negligence, weak child protection awareness, and socio-economic pressures.

He emphasised that prevention requires both law enforcement and responsible parenting, as well as a stronger societal commitment to child welfare.

He added that although some cases remain difficult to solve due to a lack of leads, police efforts are never abandoned, with surveillance and intelligence gathering continuing until breakthroughs occur.

For the families at the centre of the Delta child abduction saga, the return of their children may have brought relief, but it cannot erase the fear and pain of the days they spent searching for answers.

LEADERSHIP Weekend reports that the case has become a painful reminder that behind every missing child is a family thrown into uncertainty, a community forced to confront its vulnerabilities, and a system challenged to do more to protect its most vulnerable members.

Our correspondent reports that as investigations continue and authorities work to uncover the full network behind child abduction cases in the state, safeguarding children remains a collective responsibility. Parents, communities, schools, religious institutions and government agencies must strengthen vigilance and create safer environments in which children are protected.

For the rescued children and their families, the journey towards healing has only just begun. The scars left by fear, separation and uncertainty may take time to fade, but their reunion offers a message of hope: that swift action, community awareness and stronger protection systems can help prevent another family from experiencing the same nightmare.