The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has sealed an illegal maternity facility in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, following allegations that three babies were sold as part of a suspected child trafficking operation.
The agency said its operatives, working with the Rivers State Ministry of Health, arrested the facility’s owner, an alleged facilitator and another staff member during the operation.
According to NAPTIP, the facility, located in the Elelenwo area of Port Harcourt, was operating from a residential apartment and was allegedly being used to procure, sell and illegally transfer children.
The agency said preliminary investigations revealed that a Liberian woman residing in Belgium entered Nigeria without evidence of pregnancy and allegedly took custody of three children within about a month.
Investigators also reportedly uncovered evidence indicating that about ₦13.5 million was paid in connection with the transfer of the three children.
NAPTIP said officers from its Abuja and Rivers State commands conducted a coordinated raid on the facility and sealed the premises to preserve evidence as investigations continue.
The agency said forensic and documentary investigations have commenced to establish the identities, whereabouts and welfare of the children, as well as determine their biological and legal parentage.
Investigators are also tracing individuals allegedly involved in procuring and transferring the children, following the financial trail and examining the possible involvement of medical personnel and others linked to the suspected trafficking network.
Reacting to the development, NAPTIP Director-General, Binta Adamu Bello, expressed concern over allegations that foreign nationals were coming to Nigeria to obtain children through illegal means.
Bello said the investigation had been expanded to identify and apprehend everyone connected to the case.
She assured that anyone found culpable would face due process under the law, stressing that the safety and welfare of the affected children remained the agency’s top priority.
