A suspected child trafficker, Adejoke Popoola, has allegedly confessed to selling two sets of children she gave birth to and stealing other children for onward sale as police intensify investigations into a suspected interstate child-trafficking network in Oyo State.
Popoola, who was paraded alongside other suspects at the Oyo State Police Command headquarters in Ibadan, allegedly told journalists that she had been involved in child stealing and trafficking since October 2024.
She claimed to have sold a newborn boy and a set of twins, saying the twins were sold to a clinic in Ogeere for N300,000.
According to her, she sometimes received between N80,000 and N120,000 for each child sold.
“God blessed me with the gift of pregnancy. Anytime a man has sex with me twice, I get pregnant, and it is always difficult to abort,” she said.
Popoola, who said she had seven children of her own, explained that she resorted to selling babies whenever the men responsible for her pregnancies rejected them.
She said, “I have sold two sets of children, a newborn boy and twins as well, last year. I sold the twins to a clinic; she also resells them to her customers in Lagos. She has a baby industry.
“When the owner of the pregnancy rejects the pregnancy, that is when I sell. Sometimes I get N80,000 or N120,000 for each child I sell. The clinic in Ogeere gave me N300,000 for the twins.”
The suspect also admitted to stealing children, allegedly using different methods to gain access to homes and unsuspecting parents.
She said she sometimes posed as a prospective tenant looking for accommodation and would seize the opportunity to take children when their parents were away.
“I steal babies. I will go to their place and say I want to rent a house. Then, if I do not see anyone, if I see their children, I will just steal their children,” she said.
Popoola claimed that a woman she worked with at Ogeere Market introduced her to the practice of stealing children.
She further alleged that she sometimes disguised herself as a spiritualist to target parents of children living with disabilities.
According to her, she would promise such parents that she could cure their children before allegedly taking another child to them.
“Sometimes, I disguise myself as a spiritualist. Parents bring their disabled children to me because they cannot talk, sit, or walk. So, I will promise them that I can help them to heal, then I will go and pick another person’s child for them,” she said.
Popoola said she combined the alleged activities with the sale of herbs at Ariyo Bus Stop, Olunloyo, in Ibadan.
She also narrated how she allegedly abducted three-year-old Ifakunle Ifagbenro during an Egungun festival in Oyo Town.
According to her, she travelled to the venue after asking a commercial motorcyclist to take her to the house where the festival was being held.
She said she joined the prayers after arriving and even contributed money before the masquerade procession began.
Popoola claimed that when the child told his mother he wanted to join the procession, she volunteered to help look after him.
She said she later carried the boy on her back during the procession before allegedly fleeing with him in the evening.
The suspect claimed that 19 children had been stolen in connection with her activities, adding that six of them had died while 13 remained alive.
The police investigation, however, has uncovered a much wider network allegedly operating across state boundaries.
The Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Abimbola Olugbenga, said the Command had rescued 17 children and arrested seven suspects following an intelligence-led investigation into the alleged trafficking network.
Olugbenga said the investigation began after a petition dated July 29, 2026, submitted by Popoola, also known as Orente Alagbo, from the Sogade area of Ariyo, Ibadan.
He said detectives later linked the investigation to the disappearance of Ifakunle, who went missing during an annual masquerade festival in Oyo Town on June 29.
According to the police boss, video recordings and photographs from the event showed Popoola carrying the boy, while subsequent investigations placed her with the child around the time he disappeared.
Olugbenga said Popoola was arrested on August 4 and allegedly admitted attending the festival and leaving the venue with Ifakunle.
He said her statement became a major breakthrough, as she allegedly revealed her involvement in the theft of more than 15 children between the ages of two and seven from churches, parties and other events within and outside Oyo State.
The suspect allegedly identified Adekanbi Janet, also known as Hosanna, as an accomplice.
Janet was subsequently traced to Mowe, Ogun State, where police reportedly rescued four children aged between two and four as well as two pregnant young women allegedly being kept in her custody.
The CP said Janet allegedly told investigators that some stolen children were kept until buyers were found, while pregnant women were allegedly housed and cared for until they delivered their babies.
Information obtained from Janet reportedly helped detectives locate Ifakunle, who was rescued around the Gbagi area of Ibadan on August 20.
The investigation later extended to Delta State, where police operatives travelled to Agbor on September 2 and rescued four children allegedly stolen from Oyo State.
Two suspects, Christopher Joy, 48, and Rosemary Jesse, 53, were arrested in connection with the operation, according to the police.
Olugbenga said the arrests and recovery of the children established the interstate nature of the suspected trafficking operation.
He added that detectives had also uncovered allegations linking the network to ritual activities.
According to him, suspects allegedly told investigators that when children died while in their custody, their remains were sold to suspected ritualists.
The revelation reportedly led to the arrest of Muritala Fasasi, an Alfa, and Yakubu Azeez, a herbalist.
The police commissioner said 17 children had so far been rescued, while six others reportedly died while allegedly in the custody of their abductors.
The deceased were identified as Musharaf Lawal Tajudeen, two; Greatness Adeagbo, five; Sainat Amoo, two; Taiwo Usman, two; Daniel Solomon Olayinka, seven; and Miracle Olaniyi, four.
Olugbenga appealed to parents and guardians whose children have gone missing recently to visit the command headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan, to identify the rescued children and assist the police in reuniting them with their families.
He said investigations into the suspected trafficking network were ongoing.
We’ve got the edge. Get real-time reports, breaking scoops, and exclusive angles delivered straight to your phone. Don’t settle for stale news. Join THISTIMES on WhatsApp for 24/7 updates →
Join Our WhatsApp Channel
