The Imo State Police Command has arrested two women linked to separate child trafficking cases, reinforcing its commitment to tackling the menace of child abduction in the state.
In a dramatic turn of events, officers rejected a N1m bribe from one of the suspects, who attempted to buy her freedom.
The Command’s spokesperson, DSP Henry Okoye, disclosed the arrests in a statement on Thursday, revealing how operatives foiled the attempted trafficking of two young children and reunited one of them with his family.
In the first case, police operatives from the State Criminal Investigation Department, arrested a 32-year-old woman, Confidence Odoh, for allegedly kidnapping a three-year-old boy, Nzubechi Udodiri, in Owerri West LGA.
Investigations revealed that Odoh, a former neighbor of the victim’s family, abducted the child on February 1, 2025, while he was playing in their residential compound.
However, swift police intervention led to her arrest on February 4, and the child was rescued and safely returned to his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Udodiri Michael.
Authorities are now working to determine if Odoh had accomplices.
In a separate incident, police operatives conducting a routine stop-and-search operation along the Owerri-Aba Expressway on February 21, 2025, intercepted a 45-year-old woman, Eze Chika, traveling with a suspected stolen four-year-old child.
Initially claiming the child was hers, Chika later confessed under interrogation that she had purchased the child from a trafficking syndicate in Aba for N1.8m.
Desperate to avoid prosecution, she offered the police officers a N1m bribe, which they rejected before proceeding with her arrest.
The rescued child is now in protective custody as authorities work to locate the biological parents.
Meanwhile, police investigations are ongoing, with indications that more arrests could follow as the case unravels a potential child trafficking network.
DSP Okoye reiterated the Command’s zero tolerance for child trafficking and commended the officers for upholding integrity by refusing the bribe.
He also urged parents and guardians to be extra vigilant, advising them to monitor their children closely and report any suspicious activity to law enforcement.
“The safety of our children is a shared responsibility, and we encourage all residents to be security-conscious. Child trafficking is a serious crime, and we will continue to dismantle these criminal networks,” Okoye assured.
The Imo State Police Command has reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring the safety of children, as authorities intensify efforts to combat human trafficking in the region.
