The Gombe State Police Command has paraded a suspected human trafficker alongside 15 other suspects implicated in a baby-selling racket.
The suspects were accused of selling babies at the sum of N400,000 each to clients in Lagos and Anambra states.
ASP Mahid Muazu Abubakar, the spokesperson for the state police command, described the case as a criminal conspiracy.
According to Abubakar, the investigation unfolded after an intelligence report from the Barunde community prompted swift action by the police.
Abubakar revealed that one Khadija Shehu-Manzo, in collusion with 15 others, including a staff member of the Gombe Local Government Area, orchestrated the sale of babies last weekend.
“The community claimed that sometime within last year, one Khadija Shehu-Manzo and 15 others were involved in selling young babies to people in need,” Abubakar disclosed.
Abubakar stated that detectives from the low-cost division launched a thorough investigation, leading to the arrest of Khadija Shehu-Manzo.
The subsequent arrests confirmed that Shehu-Manzo allegedly sold two babies to Ukamaka Ugo on separate occasions. The transaction involved the sale of one child for N400,000.
“Out of the money from the sale of the babies, she gave N200,000 to one Haruna Abubakar, who is working with the Social Welfare Office in Gombe in the guise that he was going to make relevant documentation available for the proper handing over of the child.
“Yahaya Sulaiman was the person that received the money on Abubakar’s behalf,” the police spokesman stated.
The police disclosed that the trafficked babies were transported to Lagos and Anambra.
Abubakar disclosed that efforts are underway to recover the children, with Ukamaka Ugo identified as having purchased two children.
