A suspected member of a child trafficking syndicate has allegedly confessed to stealing 19 children and selling babies, including two sets of children she personally gave birth to.
The suspect, Adejoke Popoola, made the disclosure on Monday while speaking with journalists at the Oyo State Police Command headquarters in Ibadan.
Popoola claimed that she ventured into child trafficking in October 2024, saying she had sold a newborn boy and a set of twins.
She alleged that the twins were sold to a clinic in Ogeere for N300,000, while individual babies fetched between N80,000 and N120,000, depending on the circumstances.
“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.
The suspect said she had seven children, with her eldest aged 34 and her youngest six.
She explained that she sold babies when those who were responsible for the pregnancies rejected them.
Popoola also confessed to stealing children from homes, allegedly gaining access by pretending to be searching for accommodation.
“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.
She claimed that a woman she met while working at Ogeere Market taught her the method.
According to Popoola, she also disguised herself as a spiritualist and used promises of healing to gain access to families with children living with disabilities.
She said one of the children she allegedly stole was three-year-old Ifakunle Ifagbenro, who disappeared during an Egungun festival in Oyo Town on June 29.
Recounting the incident, Popoola said she travelled to the festival after asking a commercial motorcyclist to take her there.
She allegedly joined a prayer session after entering the house where the festival participants gathered and gave money during the prayers.
When the procession began, Popoola said Ifakunle's mother allowed her to help carry the boy.
She claimed that after joining the procession, she eventually placed the child on her back and fled with him.
Popoola alleged that six of the 19 children she had stolen died, leaving 13 survivors.
Police rescue 17 children
The Commissioner of Police in Oyo State, Abimbola Olugbenga, said detectives had rescued 17 children and arrested seven suspects as part of an investigation into the suspected trafficking network.
Olugbenga disclosed this during a press briefing at the command headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan.
He 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.
The investigation, however, expanded after detectives began looking into the disappearance of Ifakunle during the Oyo Town masquerade festival.
According to the CP, photographs and video recordings from the event showed Popoola carrying the child.
He said further investigation established that she was with Ifakunle around the period he disappeared.
Popoola was arrested on August 4 and allegedly admitted that she attended the festival and left with the boy.
Olugbenga said the suspect's statement provided investigators with information about the activities of the wider network and the alleged disappearance of more than 15 children aged between two and seven.
The children were allegedly stolen from churches, parties and other gatherings within and outside Oyo State.
Suspect allegedly leads police to Ogun
The CP said Popoola identified Adekanbi Janet, popularly known as Hosanna, as an alleged accomplice.
Janet was subsequently traced to Mowe, Ogun State, where police reportedly rescued four children aged between two and four.
Two pregnant young women were also allegedly found in her custody.
Olugbenga said the investigation indicated that children allegedly stolen by the syndicate were kept until buyers were found, while pregnant women were allegedly accommodated until they delivered.
He added that information obtained from Janet helped detectives locate Ifakunle around the Gbagi area of Ibadan on August 20.
The investigation was later extended to Agbor in Delta State, where four children allegedly stolen from Oyo State were rescued.
Two suspects, Christopher Joy, 48, and Rosemary Jesse, 53, were arrested during the operation on September 2, according to the police.
Alleged sale of dead children for rituals
The police said the investigation also uncovered allegations of a ritual component to the activities of the syndicate.
Olugbenga said suspects allegedly disclosed that children who died while in their custody were sold to suspected ritualists.
This led to the arrest of Muritala Fasasi, an Alfa, and Yakubu Azeez, a herbalist, the police commissioner said.
Six children were reportedly among those who died in the alleged custody of the suspects. They were identified as Musharaf Lawal Tajudeen, two; Greatness Adeagbo, five; Sainat Amoo, two; Taiwo Usman, two; Daniel Solomon Olayinka, seven; and Miracle Olaniyi, four.
The police said investigations were continuing to determine the extent of the alleged trafficking operation and identify other suspects.
Olugbenga urged parents and guardians whose children had recently disappeared to report to the command headquarters in Eleyele, Ibadan.
He said the step would enable them to identify the rescued children and assist the police in reuniting them with their families.
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